On Monday, BC Ferries CEO David Hahn appeared in Sechelt for a public meeting.
The event, put on by the local Ferry Advisory Committee, was a chance for the public to learn about route three (Horseshoe Bay-Langdale), the financial statements for the year, plans for the future and terminal upgrades and to ask questions of Hahn and two other representatives from the company.
For the most part, it was a good meeting. It's great to see Mr. Hahn take the time out of his busy schedule to come to the Coast and discuss the issues.
The message Hahn brought us was pretty positive.
Route three is finally starting to turn a profit. The planned upgrades for the Langdale terminal look to be on track, and planning should be underway in May.
Hahn recognizes the system isn't perfect. He's dealing with an aging fleet, and until terminal upgrades and new ships are brought in, we have to make do with the cards we're dealt.
The reality is that Hahn and BC Ferries don't have a lot of good cards on the table.
Hahn was also hit with a number of tough questions, including a few that we thought were inappropriate.
One member of the public, in her address to Hahn, said that "come May, after the provincial election and the Liberals are bounced from power, you will be out of a job."
She also questioned his loyalty to the province and BC Ferries and challenged him on his qualifications to do the job.
Hahn took the bullet and tried to answer the questions as best as he could, describing his corporate background and the companies he has worked for and how he took his daughter out of school and moved here from New York. He loves the Coast and B.C. and is committed to BC Ferries, something we don't question.
Everyone is certainly entitled to his or her opinion, but this was a meeting to discuss BC Ferries issues.
If it was a question of poor service, bad food, not enough sailings or schedule problems, which were all asked and answered, we have no problems, but getting up on your soap box and trying to put forth an obvious political agenda was not appropriate.
The provincial election is two months away. There will be ample time to get those messages across. Next time, save those comments for an all-candidates' forum.
