Andy Speck is running for mayor of Campbell River, citing his community experience and desire to bring residents together to address local issues.
Speck, who has lived in Campbell River for 20 years, said he enjoys working with the community.
“I’ve come to love Campbell River. I did some work with the school district as an EA, then became a youth support worker,” said Speck. “I did a lot of good work there, just being able to bring people all together to face some really difficult issues.”
He also has experience working with a mobile RV outreach unit that provides support and services to vulnerable people in the area.
The 66-year-old has never held municipal office but said he has plenty of ideas for what he hopes to accomplish if elected.
Speck believes transparency is an issue for the current mayor and council.
“A lot of the community is quite clear that decision making from the council has been a struggle,” said Speck. “Just information getting out to the public. A lot of the decisions are made after the fact.”
He said community engagement would be a key part of his campaign, including bringing back some of the city’s former advisory committees.
“When making big decisions I think there should be some collaboration with the community. Bring back some of the advisory committees, they’ve provided some valuable information before the decisions are made.”
Speck said development and environmental protection do not have to be opposing forces and believes the two can work together.
If elected, he wants to identify potential development areas that would not conflict with environmental protection efforts, helping create jobs and avoid projects being halted before completion.
Speck said he wants to help people find common ground and believes he would do a good job as mayor.
General voting day is Oct. 17. Visit My Campbell River Now for more information about local candidates.
