Mayoral candidates spar over crime and development

The future of how Kelowna grows, where it grows, and what that looks like is at the heart of the election campaign for mayor.

And those running for the top job are eager to chop into Colin Basran’s achievements as mayor, especially when it comes to crime and development.

At a forum hosted by the Chamber of Commerce, ideas started to clash when Basran was asked about the much debated and hotly contested Official Community Plan (OCP).

Basran has not shied away from his admiration for the document, admitting and explaining it is simply a guiding plan, with rules not set in stone, that must be able to adapt and shift to developments that come forward to help the city grow.

“It sets up an incredible progressive vision for our community,” he said. “There are various things we are looking for when we approve a project and make an OCP amendment.”

But mayoral hopeful David Habib was quick to challenge Basran on the fluidity of the document, much to the crowd’s delight.

Habib claimed the OCP is so fluid that someone could read it, buy a home, and then, should lawmakers decide to amend the plan, a large tower could end up going up next door unexpectedly. He then railed against a proposed downtown music venue planned for Ellis Street that he said will disturb condos in a tower nearby, some of which are worth millions of dollars.

Crime, and its rise, drew harsh critiques of Basran and his time in office. Contenders for the city’s top job lobbed accusations of insufficient action and finger pointing by the mayor, though they offered few details as to what they would do differently. Many echoed initiatives already underway.

“We have to stop blaming other levels of government,” Tom Dyas declared, then stained Basran with the credit for Kelowna having one of the highest crime rates in the country.

But Basran snapped back, expressing his frustration with Dyas’s continued use of the label. He maintained Kelowna is not the most dangerous city in the nation, but much lower on the list.

“Is leadership really about tarnishing our city’s brand in order to make yourself look good, or is it about actually working to find solutions?” Basran asked the crowd, after defending his record.

Dyas maintained Basran is simply trying to mislead voters and discredit their experiences.

But the biggest blow up of the afternoon came when the pair went toe to toe after a question about Basran’s political future.

Moderator Chris Walker asked Basran if he would commit to staying on as mayor for a full four-year term, and not jump into provincial politics. The question comes on the back of rumours that circulated late in 2021, which claimed Basran aspired to level-up and seek a seat in Victoria as a provincial MLA. He has denied the claims.

Citing his 11 years as a local lawmaker, he said he has proven his commitment to the city of Kelowna and is eager to spend another four as mayor.

“There are some great challenges ahead of us that require strong leadership but also really great collaborative relationships with our provincial and federal government,” he said. “And there is only one candidate at this table who has those.”

It was the back half of that answer about relationships that spurred Dyas to retort that he, too, has colleagues in Victoria and Ottawa.

But Basran had none of it.

“While I appreciate that Mr. Dyas lobbied one time five years ago to the federal minister of finance only to protect his own business interests as the result of potential tax changes …”

That’s all Basran could get out before a wave of ‘boos’ echoed from the audience. To what side they were opposed remains up in the air.

Others in race but couldn’t answer questions

Alongside Basran, Habib, and Dyas, jockeying for the position at the head of the council table are Silverado Socrates and Glendon Charles Smedley.

Both participated in the debate but struggled to answer many questions posed on several occasions.

Smedley’s default response was to say he would ‘seek input’ on subjects as the mayor of Kelowna. Meantime, Socrates maintained working towards peace and understanding our shared culture and history would alleviate many of the headwinds facing the city.