Three candidates have added their names to the list of people vying to fill a vacant seat on Saanich municipal council.
The nomination deadline for the Sept. 23 byelection was Friday afternoon.
New candidates include Keith Davidoff, Marsha Henderson and Art Pollard. They are running to fill the seat left vacant by the death of Vic Derman.
Davidoff, 53, is a senior project manager with B.C. Emergency Health Services, and sits on the Saanich advisory design panel.
He said he has a long interest in municipal politics and considers himself a progressive thinker. A Saanich resident of 20 years, he and his wife have six grown children.
Davidoff served on the board of Gordon Head Baseball for 20 years, including as president, and believes he was “a strong relationship-builder.”
“I’d like to understand the concerns of the people of Saanich and where I can make Saanich even better than it is today,” he said in an email.
Henderson, 57, is semi-retired from the financial sector. She has been closely involved in the Royal Oak Community Association since moving to Saanich 16 years ago.
She is chairwoman of the Saanich Community Association Network and helped found the Saanich Sunday Farmers Market. (Her co-founder, Shawn Newby, is also running.)
Henderson, who is married and has three adult sons, said Saanich council has had a challenging few years due to personality clashes.
“I put my community before my own opinion, and I feel strongly that can be a benefit to Saanich council right now,” she said. “I don’t think they need someone in there who’s going to cause more division. We don’t want to end up like Nanaimo [council].”
Pollard said affordable housing is one of the most important issues for Saanich residents.
“It’s a scenario where something has to be done,” he said. “I don’t think we’re at a crisis yet, but we’re heading that way.”
A Saanich resident of 25 years, Pollard wants to see a tax on landlords who keep properties vacant.
He has been involved with Saanich Block Watch and the Quadra Cedar Hill Community Association. He works as a cashier on the Spirit of Vancouver Island ferry.
The 58-year-old is particularly interested in the future of the Cedar Hill Golf Course and believes creative solutions are needed to make it sustainable.
Seven others are also running:
• Nathalie Chambers
• Michael Geoghegan
• Karen Harper
• Rebecca Mersereau
• Shawn Newby
• Ned Taylor
• Rob Wickson
Voting will take place Sept. 23 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Cedar Hill Recreation Centre, 3220 Cedar Hill Rd.; Gordon Head Recreation Centre, 4100 Lambrick Park Way; G.R. Pearkes Recreation Centre, 3100 Tillicum Rd.; and Saanich Commonwealth Place, 4636 Elk Lake Rd.
Advance voting will be held 8 a.m. to 8 a.m. on Sept. 13 and Sept. 18 at Saanich Municipal Hall, 770 Vernon Ave.
Whoever wins the byelection will hold the position until the municipal election in the fall of 2018.
For more information, go to saanich.ca/elections.
