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Granisle municipal candidates relay key issues

Five people running for four council seats; general election day is Oct. 15
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With five candidates running for the four Village of Granisle council seats in next month’s municipal election, Houston Today posed the same questions to each so voters could more information about their views on the community and its challenges.

Kathy Bedard is one of the incumbents hoping to be re-elected. She’s 73 and is semi-retired with a former occupation as being the chief administrative officer of the Hecate Strat Employment Development Society in Prince Rupert and one Haida Gwaii.

She’s lived in Granisle for seven years and was drawn to the community for family reasons.

1. What is the single largest issue facing the village council/village government?

— long-term sustainability

2. What is the single largest issue facing the community?

— lack of commercial and industrial properties

3. If reelected/elected, what would your first order of business be?

— Encourage strategic planning

4. What key level of service, either public or private sector, needs improvement?

— Infrastructure planning

Heather Dedio is making her first attempt at elected local government. She’s 55 and has a degree in recreation administration and is a semi-retired recreation therapist.

Granisle has been her home for five years but this is the first year she has lived in the community year-round. She was drawn here by the splendor of the area and access to health care, transportation, activities for seniors and social clubs.

1. What is the single largest issue facing the village council/village government?

— Clear communication regarding any issues the water treatment plant still has and ensuring that they are resolved.

2. What is the single largest issue facing the community?

— We as a village need to have an economic development plan to help improve tourism, business ventures, and have incentives or coordination for trades businesses.

3. If reelected/elected, what would your first order of business be?

— My first order of business would be to ensure that the village website is more informative and maintained.

4. What key level of service, either public or private sector, needs improvement?

— Granisle has many recreational opportunities. However growth and coordination of these services could be improved upon.

The same questions were posed to the other three candidates — Karen Barber, Marilyn Berglund and Calvin Thompson — but no responses were received.