Bryden Winsby - Council Candidate

[Jo]

A thread for Bryden Winsby, council candidate.

[hereiamagain]

edited to add: This is an email I received from Bryden Winsby, as I am on his email list:

Dear Friends:
Well, that's one down, two more to go. No, wait. There are three big elections between now and next summer — one of which doesn't involves us directly but certainly holds a lot of interest.

Depending upon your own sentiments (and few seem to have been swayed) Tuesday's federal go-around
a. settled nothing
b. strengthened the Conservatives but still left them in a minority position, which is a good thing
c. weakened the Liberals but still left the Conservatives in a minority, which is a bad thing

One of the more telling aspects of the vote was the low turnout at the polls. At an estimated 59.1 per cent of those eligible to cast votes, it appears to have been a record low in the history of Confederation.

Makes one wonder what sort of response we'll get on Nov. 15. In last year's inaugural Westside election, less that 45 per cent turned out, and while that's significantly higher than what municipal elections usually get, it's still disappointing. Certainly, there's a sparkling list of candidates (blush), but the only issue with any drawing power seems to be the naming of our new municipality. The squabbling over how that was handled, and the chance to vote on one's choice of a name, could get the number over 30 per cent (remember, though, it just an opinion poll; council isn't bound by the result).

How do I feel about the issue? Well, I hope council has learned that it must do more than pay lip-service to involving the community in decision-making. Although the naming committee knew its recommendations would not necessarily be adopted, council doesn't seem to have needed much help making up its collective mind, and apparently would rather do so out of the public eye. Let's hope that doesn't become a habit — although I've had a number of people tell me they think it already has. I also don't think it was necessary to have three council members sitting on the committee. One, perhaps two at most, would have sufficed.

As for my choice of name, it won't matter which one it is, I'll make somebody mad. So I'll say that at the moment it is still West Kelowna, which is what it was before the controversy heated up, and before the last election. It may not be the most inspired, but it works. It provides geographical recognition, but doesn't apply to a particular area of the municipality or make historical claims ( as could Westbank, Shannon Lake, Sunnyside, Glenrosa) and it doesn't sound like a cheap motel. Whatever the choice, the second it's announced I'll be ready to move on.
I'm surprised that of the dozens of suggestions made, nobody thought of Carrot Mountain. Look across the lake from Kelowna, from Bear Creek south and above Rose Valley. Looks like a carrot lying on its side, right? Well, that's it. Don't believe me? Look it up.
Carrot Mountain? Carrots mean rabbits. No thanks.

Speaking of things heating up, if you've got something burning your posterior that you feel needs attention (the issue, not your posterior) please let me know. Write or call. And if you know of someone who should be reading my election e-letter, don't hesitate to pass it on. Friends, neighbours, inlaws, outlaws — yes, even your enemies. After all, they might not disagree with you about everything.

Meanwhile, signs are being refurbished and should be going up within the next week. The Big Blue Dot is back. Volunteers welcome. Don't be shy.

Best regards,

Bryden

[occasional thoughts]

Is it a slip that Bryden says West Kelowna is our name "at the moment" or some sort of strategic thing? Nevertheless, and coming from that end of the municipality, it's nice to see he isn't pandering (so far) to the same thuggish people out there that scared some of our councillors into some last-minute regrettable actions.

[canadman]

Rob, I think you may be misreading Bryden's quote. I think when he refers to West Kelowna being the name now and that it was before the naming issue came up I think he means it is still his choice now and was before the naming issue. I think he is referring to the previous sentence in which he refers to what his name choice is.

[occasional thoughts]

Ah, yes, you're right; thanks.

[JVD3741]

READ Mr. Winsby's words again he said" his choice is West Kelowna, this is how misinformation gets passed along.

Way to go Mr. Winsby, nice to hear someone speak honestly about what they believe instead of what they think the people want to hear just to gain votes.

You have my vote.

[canadman]

Hello Bryden,

You will likely have my vote come November 15th however I would like to know your position on the following:

1. Development of the waterfront
2. The role you see of tourism on the Westside
3. How you foresee expanding the commercial revenue base of our municipality
4. As the recent naming committee issue may have negatively influenced future volunteer committee ventures Council may wish to undertake, how would you handle volunteer committees differently to reassure future potential committee volunteers that their volunteer work will not be wasted.
5. Maybe the toughest question, when all the naming issues are dealt with how you would recommend creating unity in our municipality

[jeriana]

I've known Bryden for over 30 years. He is a dedicated, hard working individual who will be a real asset as a council member for West Kelowna. It is individuals such as Bryden that invest their time, energy and knowledge that make our community the great place it is. I am confident that he will take the concerns of all residents and deal with them honestly and to the best of his ability. Thanks for your commitment to our community Bryden.
J. M. Holowchak

[stwilson]

I will delete the remarks I had here as they were misguided. Thanks for the update! Just keeping things clear.

Cheers.

[Fancy]

He put Bryden at the bottom of his post - think that's pretty clear.

[hereiamagain]

Does anyone else think that it is inappropriate for Mr. Winsby to be making negative remarks under the pretense of anonymity on this site. Clearly from his campaign post above, we can all see who he is and the remarks he is making on other candidate's pages. While I may agree with the remarks in some cases and not in others, he should stand up and sign his name at the bottom for us all to know where they are coming from. I think it would be great to have him on the council and create a balance for some of the other people who are there now, and just do not want to have his campaign start under these pretenses.

In case this was in reference to the post I put up above, a letter from B Winsby, I have edited my post to make it clear that the letter was not written by me. Sorry for any confusion.

Just to make it clear, I am not Bryden Winsby.

[brightstar]

Bryden, I know that I am voting for Rosalind Neis on Nov. 15th. I'm hearing some great things about you, but before I put you on my list of candidates to vote for, I'd like to know, if you are both elected, what type of working relationship will the two of you have? What is your opinion of how she did during her term as Mayor?

Thank-you in advance for your time.

[GlenCanyon]

In last night's debate you served yourself well. You spoke with knowledge and passion. You lost me on the naming issue. There are two large camps of opinions on the actions of the naming committee and to ignore one to chose the other does not show to me that you will have the leadership needed to bring our community together and heal our wounds after the dust clears. Now I reconize that you as the other's who spoke have no advance knowledge and your words might not have been where your heart and mind is. I have respected your positions for years so I wonder if that answer was more in my not hearing you as well as I thought. I will listen to your words at the next all candidates hoping I was wrong. Thank you for running you got me holding my breath at the moment.

[GlenCanyon]

Your candor on which name is both surprising and honest. A very daring position and I respect you for it. You have moved off my consider pile and onto it is between you and one other pile. How do you feel about the excessive speeding on Gellatly (portion between Gorman's and the Cove) and on Glenrosa and if you are concerned what plans do you have in the next year to reduce the speeding?

I wish you the very best of luck

[hereiamagain]

Hi Bryden, I enjoyed your speech and your answers on Monday. I really enjoyed your presence and your demeanor. You were confident and were very well aware of the issues. You have my vote. Please remember the north side when you are elected.