Dave Gordon, Terrace City Councillor

Thank you voters of Terrace! I am honoured to be able to do the work on Council for the next 4 years. Very excited for the new faces, Sarah Zimmerman, Chris Apps and Inder Dhillon. Congratulations to Brian Downie and James Cordeiro on your re-election!

And a huge thank you to Lynne Christiansen for her many years of service to our community!

Thanks also to Lynn Parker, Keenan Stella, Maryann Freeman, Peter Maloney, Melissa Linn, Martin Halbzbauer, Yvonne Nielsen and Batman for putting your names forward!

A healthy community has a vibrant and inviting downtown.

Over the next term I work with Council on the following downtown revitalization ideas.

▪️ Removal of the canopy over the 4600 Lakelse block. This structure is suffering from years of neglect, has no owner and is a fire hazard to all the businesses (no structural fire breaks). This is budgeted for 2023.

▪️ Redesign this block, with new sidewalks, new trees and plantings, and new lighting. This process is currently being led by the TDIA. The rebuild will be grant dependent, and hopefully occur in 2024 or 2025.

▪️ The City should buy Brolly Square from Imperial Oil and redevelop it into a Civic park, themed with spectular public art by our regional artists, and built to accommodate food trucks. This will pull positive traffic into our downtown core.

▪️ Continue to support downtown housing. We have over 150 housing units under construction or proposed immediately adjacent to our downtown, let’s do what we can to fill the empty lots in our downtown with more housing.

Further to my vision of building a healthy community, I will be seeking to increase the City’s focus and investments on Active Transportation – a fancy term for getting around town without a car. Key areas include:

▪️ Improving pedestrian and cycling access across the train corridor. The Sande overpass needs a wider sidewalk that is protected from traffic. Currently, it is next to impossible for two strollers to pass each other. This bridge is part of our provincial highway system, and not owned by the City, so we need to work with the Ministry of Transportation to see this happen.

▪️ A pedestrian overpass at Kenney Street would be a simple and achievable project that would reduce risk to school children, walkers and cyclists. Perhaps a second pedestrian overpass by the Curling Rink could improve access for southside residents and open access to a riverwalk route.

▪️ Giving sidewalks an equal focus to roads when considering capital improvements. Currently, sidewalks are built when the road is rebuilt. Some of our older sidewalks are verging on derelict, especially for people that are challenged with mobility. Let’s rebuild at least one sidewalk every year.

▪️ Improve pedestrian and cycling safety on the highway bridge over the Skeena River as well as over the Kalum River. Again, this a provincial highway, so lobbying good solutions will be our role.

▪️ Improve access up and down the Kalum and Lanfear hills. There are a couple of good projects in the works for both of these sites.

▪️ Provide lighting for Donald Hill that connects the College and schools on the bench with the horseshoe.

There are many more gaps as well. You are welcome to mention them in the comments.

Not an open debate… but this will have to do.

Come chat with me at the Farmers Market this Saturday.

Brought to you by Terrace Chamber of Commerce and BC Northern Real Estate Board:

CANDIDATE MEET AND GREET
October 12, 6:00 pm-9:00 pm
Terrace Royal Canadian Legion

*Not a City sponsored event. Sharing for informational purposes only

Did you know City Council has a strategic plan? This is developed by council at the start of their term. The new council will set a new plan.

I believe this new plan needs a primary focus on building a healthy community.

One of the key pillars for the health of our community will be Reconciliation. We live on Ts'ymsen territory, and are neighbours to the Nisga'a, Haisla, Gitxsan, Tahltan and so many more. We will be a much stronger and healthier community when we embrace the strengths of the First Nations, Metis and Inuit peoples that call Terrace home, or come here to work, shop, play and visit.

Let's start with the relatively simple work that builds trust and relationships.

▪️ Sm'algyax is the language of the Ts'ymsen people and core to their culture. Let's get Sm'algyax on our Welcome to Terrace signage, street signs, public buildings etc.

▪️ Public art installations such as murals and sculptures tells people they belong. The world's best Northwest Coast artists live in Terrace, yet their art is just now starting to become integrated into our community.

▪️ Let's call out racism in all its forms, acknowledge the systemic racism upon which Canada was built, and strive for a future of respect and inclusion.

I very much look forward to the further building of relationships with community organizations such as the Kermode Friendship Centre, Gitlaxdax Terrace Nisga'a society as well as the government to government relationships with our Kitsumkalum, Kitselas, Nisga'a and Haisla neighbours.

There is much work to do, and so much potential to be realized. I am very excited for the next 4 years.

On Monday we had a very long and challenging council meeting. At the end of this nearly 5 hour meeting, a resident opposed to the proposed new location for the shelter spoke about shooting people who may enter his property. This is absolutely not OK, and I very much regret not saying so at the time. No excuse here, I need to learn to be out of my comfort zone and call this sort of behaviour out.

At the meeting, a Front Line worker, Billy Morrison, spoke out with great passion about the challenges of people with addictions on the streets. While his delivery was disruptive to the meeting and upsetting to some, he spoke his truth, did not threaten violence and after a short delay, we carried on with our meeting. Billy and his fellow supporters drummed and sang outside the meeting. The 3 car RCMP response was perhaps more than was needed for this peaceful protest.

As a community, we need to work collaboratively to get through this crisis of addiction. This crisis is literally killing our children, brothers and sisters, parents, traumatizing friends and families, and destroying aspects of the social fabric of our community. Over 30,000 (!) people in Canada have died over the past 5 years, and Terrace has one of the highest fatal overdose rates in the country.

To the Front Line workers at our social agencies, first responders and workers at our medical facilities, I thank you for your service to our community. To the Ksan Society, Kermode Friendship Society and other groups that are choosing to save and support people in such personal crisis, THANK YOU! You are carrying an enormous burden and showing community leadership in the face of unimaginable tragedies across our communities and in our families. You are not, and cannot be responsible for the crime, violence and anti-social behavior that a small percentage of people with addictions are doing in our community.

To the families living near our downtown core and on the southside that are dealing every day with criminal and anti-social activities that undermine the safety of your neighborhoods and homes, I know you are frustrated with our inability to keep you and your families safe. We cannot police ourselves out of these problems, and we do not have the resources, expertise or legal authority to fund the treatment and wellness centers that may provide a path forward for those that are ready to change. We are left advocating to higher levels of government to fulfill their responsibilities.

We need to work together towards solutions. Solutions that provide compassion and support to those living with addiction. Solutions that provides a route out. Treatment, counselling, housing and education are foundations that need to be addressed to move forward. Adequate and secure funding is needed for front line agencies to train and retain staff and deliver the services so desperately needed. Appropriate policing and criminal justice is required for those that make our communities unsafe, and our penal systems need to be focused on rehabilitation rather than punishment.

There is so much work to do. It all starts with compassion, empathy, kindness and caring. If we can all start there, I think anything is possible.

What a busy week at the UBCM conference this week!

▪️ Met with Northern Health to advocate for The Foundry, call for Complex Care funding for people with addictions and mental health challenges, and put our support behind the Northern First Nation Alliance’s call for a detox and wellness centre.

▪️met with Acting Attorney General Murray Rankin to discuss the burden of prolific offenders in our community and advocate for the Foundry as a means to support youth in our community.

▪️Met with the Métis Nation to hear of their plans to support Métis people in Terrace

▪️Met with Sheila Malcolmson, Minister of Mental Health and Addictions to advocate for The Foundry, and call for Complex Care beds

▪️Met with RCMP Comissioner Eric Stubbs to discuss challenges with prolific offenders, challenges with policing and costs in Terrace (and reminisce about Guns and Hoses hockey games while he was leading the Terrace detachment

▪️Signed the MOU with the Province for the Resource Benefit Alliance (Yes!)

▪️met with CN to discuss challenges with pedestrian crossings of the railway

The entire week was full of informal meetings with Ministers, study sessions and yes, a few good meals in Whistler village 😁. A huge thank you from me to councillors Sean Bujitas, Brian Downie, Lynne Christiansen, Mayor Carol Leclerc and our City Manager Kris Bolland for guiding this new councillor through the process and introducing me to key Ministers and staff in the provincial government!

Great to see such interest in working at the council table!

2022 MUNICIPAL ELECTION-
At 4:00 pm today, September 9, the nomination period closed for candidates in the upcoming City of Terrace municipal election. The Chief Election Officer has signed the declaration of candidates, so we can now provide you with the list (in alphabetical order):

Candidates for the office of Mayor:
Sean Bujtas

Candidates for the office of Councillor:
Chris Apps
Lynne Christiansen
James Cordeiro
Inder S Dhillon (Inderpal Dhillon)
Brian Downie
MaryAnn Freeman
Dave Gordon (David Gordon)
Martin Holzbauer
Melissa D Linn
Peter Moloney
Yvonne Nielsen
Danny Nunes
Lynn Parker (Lynn Wright-Parker)
Keenan A Stella
Sarah Zimmerman

Next steps:
-September 13 (4:00pm) is the deadline for anyone to challenge a candidate’s nomination.
-The Chief Election Officer has until September 14 to provide a decision on any challenges.
-September 14 is also the deadline for a candidate to withdraw their own name, or for anyone to withdraw their endorsement of a candidate.
-On September 19, the Chief Election Officer will provide a declaration of election.
-Advance voting takes place October 5 and October 12 (8:00am-8:00pm) at the Terrace Sportsplex
-General Voting Day on October 15 (8:00am-8:00pm) at the Terrace Sportsplex and Cassie Hall Elementary School.
Read the news release announcing candidates at https://www.terrace.ca/discover-terrace/news/declaration-candidates-2022-municipal-election
Find all election information at https://www.terrace.ca/elections

I am pleased to announce I am seeking re-election for city council on October 15! The last 16 months on council have been a great experience, learning what is within the realm of municipal politics, learning what isn’t, and understanding how to navigate a system that is quite different than my business experience!

Over the next few weeks I will post about my key areas of concern over the next 4 years, and also provide some background on what council and staff are working on.

I am thrilled we have such a broad slate of candidates (15!) for council! And congratulations Sean Bujitas on being acclaimed Mayor! It has been a pleasure working with you on Council, and I have no doubt you will be an excellent mayor.

What an honour this week to witness the pole raising at Wii Gyemsiga Siwilaawksat, the new Coast Mountain College student housing. The day also honoured the artists that contributed to the artwork throughout the residence.

Way to go Stan Bevan and your amazing team of Freda Diesing graduates! We have such world class talent in our community!

Great to see these improvements in our downtown!

Another downtown building will be getting a new look this summer. The historic building on the corner of Kalum St. and Lakelse Ave. will be getting a facade upgrade. The building owners applied to the facade grant program which allows owners up to $5000 in matching grants to improve the exterior facades of their storefronts. The Terrace and District Chamber of Commerce building was once the historic home of the Terrace RCMP detachment. Keep your eyes peeled for big changes coming soon!

The Northwest Regional Airshow was a huge success yesterday! Huge shoutout to the organizers and volunteers that made it happen. Thank you! Let’s not wait 22 years for the next one!

I was able to tour key sites the City is responsible for, and are at risk for flooding.

The Skeena St sewage lift pump station would fail if it became inundated with water. It has been protected with Tiger Dams, tubes filled with water and anchored to the ground. If this area floods, crews would need to man pumps at this site.

The Terrace sewage lagoons are well protected with rip rap installed along the riverbank, and the berms are well elevated above the flood level. However, a couple of adjacent buildings are not and will also be protected with Tiger dams if needed. Also, when the river is really high, gravity doesn’t work in our favour and the lagoons need to be pumped to drain. This requires crews to fuel and take care of the pumps.

The secondary water intake is by the Skeena River off the bottom of Kalum St. This is in middle of the floodplain and is only used as a back up to our wells. City crews would protect this with Gabion baskets, wire cages line with plastic to make a seal, and filled with gravel.

Huge thanks to Emergency Management BC who have provided us with the Tiger dams and Gabion baskets, and helped in the training to set up and deploy.

Well this looks a lot better! The high water even next week is now modelled to be more in the 1:5 year event, down from the 1:200 year event that was previously modelled. WHEW!

Though this is the north coast, and anything can still happen. I hope my friends in the floodplains are sleeping a bit better.

The modelling today shows a much lower flood than it did yesterday. BUT… it is still likely to be substantial!

Please follow the RDKS and City pages and websites for flood updates. And please stay safe!

The City of Terrace has activated its Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) due to the current flood risk caused by rising Skeena River levels.

🔹 City staff are monitoring rising Skeena River levels
🔹 Ferry Island will be closed to both day users and overnight camping as of 11 am on Friday, June 3
🔹 Fisherman's Memorial Park closed to the public as of Friday, June 3
🔹 More information on sandbags coming on Wednesday, June 1

It is important to note that opening the EOC does not mean a declaration of a local state of emergency; however, it does prepare the City in the event that one is required. The EOC is a group of staff dedicated to managing a potential emergency by prioritizing activities and allocating available resources, as well as communicating to the public, among other tasks.

Members of the public are strongly reminded not to drive through areas near the river that may be experiencing rising waters nearby if they are not residents of the area. If there is an emergency, crews need to be able to access the area and additional unnecessary traffic will hamper their ability to do so. A rising river is very dangerous—please stay safe and do not approach the riverbank.

All information, updates, and resources will be provided at https://www.terrace.ca/flooding2022 and shared through the City’s Facebook and Twitter accounts. Our next update will be on June 1.

News release: https://www.terrace.ca/discover-terrace/news/city-terrace-activates-emergency-operations-centre-due-flood-risk-2022

This looks like it could be the big one folks…. Modelling suggests flows greater than the 1948 flood.

Please support those who may be reaching out for help moving belongings to higher ground.

The City of Terrace has activated its Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) due to the current flood risk caused by rising Skeena River levels.

🔹 City staff are monitoring rising Skeena River levels
🔹 Ferry Island will be closed to both day users and overnight camping as of 11 am on Friday, June 3
🔹 Fisherman's Memorial Park closed to the public as of Friday, June 3
🔹 More information on sandbags coming on Wednesday, June 1

It is important to note that opening the EOC does not mean a declaration of a local state of emergency; however, it does prepare the City in the event that one is required. The EOC is a group of staff dedicated to managing a potential emergency by prioritizing activities and allocating available resources, as well as communicating to the public, among other tasks.

Members of the public are strongly reminded not to drive through areas near the river that may be experiencing rising waters nearby if they are not residents of the area. If there is an emergency, crews need to be able to access the area and additional unnecessary traffic will hamper their ability to do so. A rising river is very dangerous—please stay safe and do not approach the riverbank.

All information, updates, and resources will be provided at https://www.terrace.ca/flooding2022 and shared through the City’s Facebook and Twitter accounts. Our next update will be on June 1.

News release: https://www.terrace.ca/discover-terrace/news/city-terrace-activates-emergency-operations-centre-due-flood-risk-2022

It has been my honour to work with Raven-Tacuara art collective for the past 5 years. Their contributions to beautifying our northern communities are well showcased in this great video!

raven tacuara reel 2021 Raven-Tacuara art collective mural works 2021

This will be a great addition to our city! Active transportation is so important for a healthy community.

Lakelse Gateway Connection Project Update for January 2022:

In February 2021, we announced we had received $921,352 in grant funding for the Lakelse Gateway Connection Project. This 1-kilometre, multi-use pathway will more safely connect Terrace to Thornhill and beyond.

In November 2021, we released a request for proposals for design services for this project. We are now pleased to announce that Urban Systems Limited has been awarded with this contract. Urban Systems will be completing a final design by March 2022. Public consultation with adjacent property owners will also begin in February. Construction should be complete by fall 2022 (follow the link below for the full projected timeline!).

Find full project information and updates at https://www.terrace.ca/lakelse-gateway

I am honoured and humbled to be elected to City Council. Thank you very much to all those who voted for me, and who provided advice, support and guidance along the way.

Thanks as well to Alexander Pietralla, Joely Viveiros and Amandeep Saini, for putting your names on the ballot. It was a positive, forward looking campaign. I hope you will all run again in 2022.

I very much look forward to working with our City Council and staff!

Voting for the Terrace by-election finishes up this Saturday June 5!

Please support me in my bid to be on City Council. I very much look forward to working with the community towards a new vision for the City of Terrace.

I have presented a few of my ideas towards revitalizing our downtown and the challenges of reconciliation we are working towards with the First Nation's peoples and organizations that have been here since time immemorial. It is my hope that I will be able to lead and support the community collaborations required to make positive change.

While I look forward to working on topics I am passionate about, the bulk of City Council work is the governance activities required for a municipality with a $26 million budget to spend, and +/-$35 million of work to do each year. Difficult choices are presented every day, and I will do the work to make the best decisions for our community. My 25+ years of managing and owning business in Terrace provide a strong foundation for City governance, as does my more recent experience on the Board of My Mountain Coop - another public organization that somehow manages to deliver each year with about half the money they really need!

I am very impressed with the staff of the City that I collaborate with on the various projects I have guided through town over the years, and I am excited to be part of the new energy that comes with the mid-career professionals that are currently stepping into new leadership roles in City departments.

This community has such high potential to grow and develop in a diverse manner, while still maintaining our community connections. The challenges will be extraordinary, but we have extraordinary people and can find solutions towards positive change.

Please exercise your right to vote on Saturday.

Thank you for your support!

The issues of people with addictions in our downtown is perhaps the most important challenge for our community. While mental health and addictions fall under the jurisdiction of the Province, the reality is that these challenges will require a great deal of work at the community level. If I am elected to council, here will be my approach.

First of all, let’s always address people in our downtown with compassion and respect. These are our children, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles and parents. The hurt and trauma of addiction that they and their families are living through is a heavy burden. No one wants to live this way by choice.

We need to continually advocate for additional funding from the province for agencies and organizations that have expertise and experience work on this.

Addiction is rooted in trauma, and with the horrific discovery in Kamloops this week of 215 dead children, the trauma can no longer be ignored, discounted or re-imagined to a world of alternate facts. Until we, as a society, support the healing that is required, the trauma and addictions will perpetuate. The City needs to actively acknowledge the trauma, support healing activities and build a welcoming and inclusive community. The City also needs to pursue treatment facilities in our community. Partnering with organizations that have expertise in this area, and with our regional neighbours through the Northwest First Nations Alliance will be key. We need an active recovery community in Terrace to support people that struggle with addictions.

We need to support science based harm reduction in our community, led by experts and supported by politicians. Right now, we see the effects of unsafe injection sites in the discarded needles. What is not as visible are the dead bodies from overdoses. Our health region has the highest rate of fatal overdoses in the province. Every 4 hours, another member of someone’s family dies in BC, and the rates are climbing. I would support a safe injection site in Terrace. None of the people with addictions in our community deserve to die.

4: There needs to be consequences for people that chronically engage in petty criminal activities such as shoplifting. Local businesses are dealing with the same people coming in day after day and stealing without any consequence. It is emotionally and financially draining to those that work so hard in our downtown to run a business. More law enforcement uniforms on the street make some people feel more safe, but a path forward through the criminal justice system is extraordinarily costly and tends to perpetuate trauma. Our penal system is disproportionately filled with First Nations peoples and people struggling with addictions. I don’t have the answers for this, but will certainly listen to and support those that can bring viable options forward.

Public art is a step towards reconciliation. In Terrace we are embarking on an ambitious mural program to create world class art in our downtown. These murals normalize First Nation's culture and presence in our settler community, and pay artists a professional scale for their work.

The Truth and Reconciliation Call for Justice #83: "We Call upon the Canada Council for the Arts to establish, as a funding priority, a strategy for Indigenous and non-Indigenous artists to undertake collaborative projects and produce works that contribute to the reconciliation process." Well, I have not yet seen much Canada Council for the Arts funds land in town, but we are doing this as a community, thanks to funding from the TDIA, property owners and a wide array of other community donors.

The MMIWG Calls for Action specify support for education and skills training, and also to support the retention and revitalization of Indigenous Cultures. We are grateful for the contributions by graduates of Freida Diesing School of Northwest Coast Art, as well as graduates of other Art Schools. Their professional art installations stand as a testament to their skills and interpretation of culture.

The murals also supports the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).

These murals are steps towards reconciliation. There is still much work to do.

This is an important project. It would be good for the City of Terrace to play a role in taking this from concept to reality.

Kudos to these leaders for getting this going!

Northwest B.C. First Nations seek to set up full service detox centre in Terrace - Terrace Standard Northern First Nations Alliance’s project seeks to address shortage of such facilities in the region

This is the Uplands Elementary Natural Playground that I helped to build along with super-volunteer Kevin Barton. Julie Nickarz was our fearless leader, and the whole community stepped up to build and donate.

I cannot post this though without seeing the contrast between this wonderful community project where kids can play safely and without worry, and the horrors of children at residential schools, who did not have a community looking out for them, and the digging on the school grounds was for graves, not playgrounds.

There is much work for us to do to support healing from the traumas of residential schools. We can and will make positive change.

My heart aches today for the grief I cannot even imagine.

City Hall, let's lower our flags in respect to all those grieving this horrific loss.

One of the key areas I want to work on through City Council is downtown revitalization. We are on the verge of losing our downtown... storefronts are empty, Brolly Square looks like a construction zone and we lack vibrancy to bring people back downtown.

Yes, I am acutely aware of the social issues downtown (I will post on that later), but there are a few things we can do in our town to make positive change, and pull positive traffic into our downtown.

The TDIA has been working on the downtown canopy for a while. Next steps are to get property owner buy in and the City on board. The City can support this by applying for NDIT Downtown Revitalization Grant fund ($300,000+ available, and supplement it with funds from the Northern Capital Grant. This has potential to change our downtown in a big way for a generation!

Many of you who know me will know that I am a passionate gardener and landscaper (some may say obsessive 😃). I have been an active contributor to City gardens through volunteering with the Terrace Beautification Society. Here is a sample of a few projects I led in our beautiful community!

We live in one of the best growing regions in Canada. I am thrilled that the City now has a full time Gardener, and additional staff to make our public gardens look their best all year. As a councilor, I will always advocate for keeping our city beautiful through maintaining and thoughtful management of our gardens, parks and other civic lands.

Terrace’s own Nirmal Parmar is a BC Achievement Community Award winner!

Nirmal is one of our finest community leaders and has been volunteering in this community forever!

So glad you have received this recognition! Well deserved!

BC Achievement Community Award 2021 - BC Achievement Foundation The Community Award is the cornerstone of BC Achievement’s mission to honour excellence and inspire achievement in the province of BC.

Thank you Erica Davis and Robert Davis for leading the March and speaking so well at today’s National Awareness Day for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.