City of Powell River Councillor Chris McNaughton will be relinquishing his civic duties after the November 15 municipal election.
The two-term councillor has decided not to run for a third term for health reasons. While McNaughton feels he still has contributions to make toward city governance, the prospect of campaigning for re-election after recovering from a stroke in 2013 is foreboding. He has decided to dedicate his time fully to recovery and family life after his current term expires.
“I need to spend the next four years focused on my rehabilitation,” McNaughton said. “Four years from now, if I feel stronger, I might come back and seek re-election. It’s time now to spend time with my family.”
McNaughton has held economic and finance positions on city council for six years, which befits his business background. He looks back with pride on the accomplishments of the two councils in which he has served, and his involvement with the many projects completed during his tenure.
His portfolios have included chairing the mayor’s task force on economic revitalization up until his stroke. When he returned to council, a new select committee for economic development was created and McNaughton was elected chair from among his peers. He has also worked tirelessly on waterfront issues, such as the revitalization of the north and south harbours.
Chairing the Westview Waterfront Development committee was a highlight. “That group of great volunteers, including councillors Maggie Hathaway and Russell Brewer, and Pam Krompocker from Community Futures, played a significant role in the $17 million worth of waterfront revitalization that occurred and was supported by a referendum for $6 million of borrowing,” McNaughton said.
“We managed to reconfigure the north harbour and put in a transient boat facility in the south harbour, as well as refurbish the pier, put in a new wharfinger building and revitalize the infill area.”
It was the waterfront that initially drew McNaughton to Powell River. He made a visit to the community before he came here to live to attend a waterfront development conference hosted by Powell River Regional Economic Development Society (PRREDS). His wife, Arlette Raaen, was chair of that organization at the time and he was chair of the Sechelt economic development partnership, which was looking at waterfront development strategies.
Another highlight was the time that McNaughton served with the Powell River Regional District board’s select committee for the replacement of Olive Devaud Residence. The committee was made up of Councillor Debbie Dee, Colin Palmer, regional district chair, Frances Ladret, who was then the regional district’s administrator, and McNaughton.
“During one of our telephone meetings with Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH), I proposed a funding model,” McNaughton said. “I believe Frances Ladret and the board of the regional hospital district had the responsibility of working through the process and making that funding model work. Willingdon Creek Village is the result of that.”
Part of the idea of community ownership of the care facility was keeping the jobs in Powell River for Powell River people.
“If this thing was turned over to a contractor, they would have control over employment, and that would impact our community in a dramatic way,” McNaughton said.
He leaves council with some unfinished business. McNaughton would have liked greater progress made with the ferries. “We would like to see the ferry service recognized as part of our highways and it would be our marine highway component of the provincial highway system,” he said.
McNaughton is also disappointed that liquid waste management has not been completed.
What he will probably miss the most about leaving city council is working with great elected colleagues and staff.
“Together we’ve accomplished a lot,” he said. “The mayor will often refer to the fact when we started, we were told if you get one thing done during your term, you’ll be really lucky. I think we’ve completed upwards of a dozen major initiatives during our two terms. Ultimately, the I word doesn’t work on council because we are a collection of people—a team—that together has to make decisions.”
