The candidates for Gibsons council are starting to take shape in advance of the municipal election on Nov. 19.
Charlene SanJenko, a Gibsons resident since 2004, announced Oct. 7 that she would be running for council.
"I have been looking for responsible leadership since we moved to the Sunshine Coast seven years ago -leadership in business, in our community and in local government," said SanJenko in a media release. "Leadership comes with a clear vision of where we're going as a community and action steps of how we're going to get there. I believe young families and working couples need to see clear direction in order to stay passionate and engaged in their communities -bottom-line, in order to stay on the Coast."
Since moving to the Coast, SanJenko and her partner Ben have become deeply involved in the community on a number of levels -as small business owners, and active volunteers.
"I want to set an example. Younger, working individuals should play a role in community leadership at a government level," SanJenko said.
In a media release on Oct. 10, 33-year-old Brian Hubenig said after playing a major role in the campaigns for both Liberal and Conservative members of Parliament over the years, it was time for him to step up to the plate.
"I'm asking everyone in Gibsons to consider choosing me as their representative on Gibsons council in November," he said in a news release. "I'm dedicated to helping this Town retain its wonderful character as it evolves to meet the needs and provide an excellent quality of life for all the people who live here."
He and his wife Shelly have been residents of Gibsons for 13 years and he has called the Town home for much longer than that. Growing up in Halfmoon Bay, he spent a great deal of his childhood and teenage years in Gibsons. After spending a year in North Van to attend college, he chose to return to the Sunshine Coast and made Gibsons his permanent home.
"There's something unique about each area on the Sunshine Coast, but I was drawn to Gibsons," he said. "I grew up on the Coast and understand the challenges facing youth. I grew up in a family of business owners and am one myself, so I understand the challenges of running small business. And because my grandfather retired on the Coast, I'm also familiar with the challenges our seniors face."
As a council member he intends to advocate for good ideas that work for the entire community. Development and the environment have always been hot topics for the residents of Gibsons, and he believes the Town can do much more in reconciling the differences between the two seemingly opposing views.
A week after announcing his resignation as executive director of the Sunshine Coast Conservation Association (SCCA), Dan Bouman has announced his candidacy for Gibsons council in a news release on Oct. 11.
"I am running to ensure that sound governance and open democracy continue to be the first focus of council," Bouman said. "Good governance respects the public interest above all. I also want to ensure that the Town continues to advance toward a genuinely sustainable future."
Bouman was the executive director of the SCCA for the last 10 years and is an accomplished advocate for parks, wildlife and local control of the Sunshine Coast's principle drinking watersheds. He is the co-author (with Andrew Scott) of The People's Water, which is about how people working in small not-for-profit groups changed public policy and protected source areas of drinking water here on the Sunshine Coast. He was a founding member of the Tetrahedron Alliance and the SC Water First Society and is a former director of the Friends of Gospel Rock Society.
He first visited the Sunshine Coast in 1971 and has lived here full time since 1974. "Gibsons is a special place; it has scenic beauty, superb water and a highly diverse creative community," he said. "Gibsons has been a leader in open progressive government and in moving toward a sustainable future. It has one of the best official community plans I've ever seen. Council has conducted its business in the full view of the public and hasn't hidden behind in-camera meetings. It has a committee structure that is a model of citizen involvement, strives for sound public process and is usually responsive to the public will.
"These are qualities of good governance. Council has certainly made some mistakes, but over the last dozen or so years, the trend has been more progressive than in any other jurisdiction in the region."
SanJenko, Hubenig and Bouman join Hammy McClymont and Brian Sadler as confirmed council candidates on the ballot alongside incumbent councillors Gerry Tretick, LeeAnn Johnson and Bob Curry.
