34 replies to this topic

[VicHockeyFan]

Out of the race, that is...

Another Victoria councillor won't seek office
Carolyn Heiman, Times Colonist
Published: Thursday, July 10, 2008

A second Victoria city councillor has announced they will hang up their spurs.

Bea Holland, who has served 12 years as a councillor, announced today that she won't seek re-election Nov. 15.

Earlier this month Coun. Helen Hughes announced she would retire from city politics after 18 years, and last December Mayor Alan Lowe announced he wouldn't be seeking another term.

With three clear vacancies on council new candidates to municipal politics are lining up, and others on council have either decided to take a run at the top job or are considering it.

Coun. Dean Fortin has announced he will run for mayor. Also seeking the position are developer Stan Sipos and Simon Nattrass, a production assistant for a real estate newspaper.

Councillors Chris Coleman and Charlayne Thornton-Joe are widely thought to be eyeing the mayor's chair.

Holland had one piece advice for people running for council: "Listen without making judgments because the information that needs to be gathered is very broad and you need to hear all of the information before you make judgment...(Also) work hard at not taking criticism personally."

Looking back on the 12 years Holland said she was grateful to be part of a council that got the Save-On Centre Memorial Arena built and added to the number of residents living downtown by approving a number of residential developments.

The 75-year-old Holland said will use her new found time to spend more time with her grandchildren and other family members.

[Nparker]

Looking back on the 12 years Holland said she was grateful to be part of a council that got the Save-On Centre Memorial Arena built....

Is this Ms. Holland's actual quote? if so it's a good thing she is retiring. If not, SHAME on the Times-Colonist for not getting the name of our (beloved?) entertainment complex correct. As we all know the correct (if unwieldy) name is "SAVE-ON-FOODS MEMORIAL CENTRE".

[VicHockeyFan]

Is this Ms. Holland's actual quote? if so it's a good thing she is retiring. If not, SHAME on the Times-Colonist for not getting the name of our (beloved?) entertainment complex correct. As we all know the correct (if unwieldy) name is "SAVE-ON-FOODS MEMORIAL CENTRE".

They've already pulled the article, I presume they are fixing it as we speak.

EDIT: No they put it back with the same error.

[Nparker]

LOL! But we at Vibrant Victoria are both faster and more eagle-eyed!

[Concerned Citizens]

CCC

The announced departure of Victoria City Councillors Helen Hughes and Bea Holland is good news for anyone in Victoria seriously looking for a real change at City Hall. These ladies are responsible, with outgoing Mayor Alan Lowe and the rest of the sold-out Council, for allowing a growing problem of homelessness downtown to become a national disgrace chronicled in the National Post, all the while accommodating the real estate development lobby in practically every instance of applications for zoning variances.

The arena of which Mrs. Holland is so proud is frankly an architectural embarrassment that was 'sold' to the people of Victoria with a bogus referendum process. A small minority of eligible voters (19.75%) dictated the borrowing of $30,000,000 for the project. The vast majority (80.25%) of eligible voters either boycotted the phoney referendum or voted against it.

Effectively, the Council saddled the taxpayers with a bill which will end up costing at least $63,000,000, amortized over 30 years, or about $2,100,000 a year wasted on an ugly monolith that was never mandated by a majority of Victoria's eligible voters. Is it worth $63M? Of course not.

We say: "Good riddance, and thanks for nothing, Mr. Lowe, Mrs. Hughes and Mrs. Holland."

-Gregory Hartnell, President
Concerned Citizens' Coalition

CCC

[aastra]

I agree with you, that arena is a civic embarrassment. The folks in London, ON and Winnipeg did it right, so why didn't Victoria? I'm with you 100% that we should have spent more on the arena and built a facility that was truly worthy of this city.

[VicHockeyFan]

I agree with you, that arena is a civic embarrassment. The folks in London, ON and Winnipeg did it right, so why didn't Victoria? I'm with you 100% that we should have spent more on the arena and built a facility that was truly worthy of this city.

Exactly, we should have spent upwards of $100M amortized. Saskatoon has a better facilty than us. But at least we got one. And Mr. Hartnell, the "vast majority" of Victorians never come out in support, or in opposition, to anything. We ran a referendum, and it passed. No one told folks to stay home, and I don't remember any "boycott the referendum" campaign.

[Koru]

CCC

The announced departure of Victoria City Councillors Helen Hughes and Bea Holland is good news for anyone in Victoria seriously looking for a real change at City Hall. These ladies are responsible, with outgoing Mayor Alan Lowe and the rest of the sold-out Council, for allowing a growing problem of homelessness downtown to become a national disgrace chronicled in the National Post, all the while accommodating the real estate development lobby in practically every instance of applications for zoning variances.

The arena of which Mrs. Holland is so proud is frankly an architectural embarrassment that was 'sold' to the people of Victoria with a bogus referendum process. A small minority of eligible voters (19.75%) dictated the borrowing of $30,000,000 for the project. The vast majority (80.25%) of eligible voters either boycotted the phoney referendum or voted against it.

Effectively, the Council saddled the taxpayers with a bill which will end up costing at least $63,000,000, amortized over 30 years, or about $2,100,000 a year wasted on an ugly monolith that was never mandated by a majority of Victoria's eligible voters. Is it worth $63M? Of course not.

We say: "Good riddance, and thanks for nothing, Mr. Lowe, Mrs. Hughes and Mrs. Holland."

-Gregory Hartnell, President
Concerned Citizens' Coalition

CCC

I guess thats why Helen Hughes, Mayor Lowe and Bea Holland have been in municipal government for so long eh? because voters were so dissatisfied with the services they have tirelessly provided this city they kept re-electing the 3 into public office...

In the democratic process its quite unfortunate that people don't understand boycotting a referendum or other voting procedures accomplishes nothing because then their voice is not heard, as voting is how you get you're voice heard. I speak for myself and many other younger Victorians when I say how glad we are to have the arena that we do. It has allowed numerous concerts and live shows that would not have been possible with the previous arena. While some mistakes may have been made in the process of building the arena overall the end result is a blessing for Victoria and the whole region, it will continue to provide us with good clean entertainment from world class performers and continued jobs that these entertainers bring. It is neither a monolith or an eyesore, it is the first step in the revitalization of the entire neighborhood it encompasses...

I and many others that have voted for Bea, Helen and Alan continually into office for many years, say thank you to them for their tireless work to benefit the economy, vibrancy and continued growth, bringing Victoria out of the stone age of development to a modern, happening city with provoking and architecturally pleasing buildings

[Concerned Citizens]

CCC

The CCC has maintained for a number of years a position similar to that of former Victoria mayor Peter Pollen who warned Victorians that the $30M loan needed by the private-public partnership to build the arena would prove to be too costly a burden for the City of Victoria to shoulder alone. That is still our position.

Had the costs been shared by all the municipalities in the metropolitan region (CRD), which they are not, we might not have held such a contrary position. Amalgamation? If it is mandated by the people, not forced by the province and set up by law to reduce costs for services, why not?

We believe the true values of the 'YES" voters, that deluded minority of eligible voters that I refer to above, are shown in the support they gave to the new arena idea, and the contempt and neglect that they thereby show to the poorest of the poor who litter our downtown sidewalks.

The mayor and council continue to ignore the poor, and the mentally ill. These people should be our priority. After we have attended to their needs, then would be the proper time to build entertainment palaces. To make my point, I note that none of the above supporters of the new monstrosity refer to the homeless at all.

The present Council seems heartless, materialistic and irresponsible to us. We will be relieved to see all of them replaced. We encourage all of the incumbents to follow the lead of Hughes, Holland and Lowe, and make way for some new blood.

G. Hartnell

CCC

[Caramia]

Heartless? Seriously? How the hell you justify blaming homelessness on these two women boggles me. A junky shoots up in an alley, a family falls apart, and somehow it is Bea Holland and Helen Hughes' fault? Your assertion that either of these women ignore homelessness is a bold faced lie.

What exactly would you have done Mr Hartnell in order to have prevented all this homelessness? I'd love to know. Let's start hearing solutions from you instead of mud slinging.

[Koru]

Heartless? Seriously? How the hell you justify blaming homelessness on these two women boggles me. A junky shoots up in an alley, a family falls apart, and somehow it is Bea Holland and Helen Hughes' fault? Your assertion that either of these women ignore homelessness is a bold faced lie.

What exactly would you have done Mr Hartnell in order to have prevented all this homelessness? I'd love to know. Let's start hearing solutions from you instead of mud slinging.

AMEN

[Lover Fighter]

Exactly, we should have spent upwards of $100M amortized. Saskatoon has a better facilty than us. But at least we got one. And Mr. Hartnell, the "vast majority" of Victorians never come out in support, or in opposition, to anything. We ran a referendum, and it passed. No one told folks to stay home, and I don't remember any "boycott the referendum" campaign.

Saskatoon's arena may be better than Save-on but that's saying much. Winnipeg's and London's arenas are much better examples of smaller city size arenas done right. Saskatoon's arena may be bigger, but it's still a piece of crap... a piece of crap with a higher seating capacity.


And I was actually saddened when I heard Hughes would be departing. She was probably my favourite councilor.

[Concerned Citizens]

CCC

To make a silk purse out of a sow's ear, the City of Victoria should sell the arena for top dollar, no less than $40M, thereby saving the wastage of $23M to retire the loan.

Build a new or renovate an existing facility to serve as a downtown residential addiction-recovery centre for homeless addicts.

Fund neighbourhood recovery houses run by recovering addicts.

No funding for so-called 'safe-injection sites,' nor for the needle exchanges.

-Hartnell

CCC

[aastra]

You've convinced me. Until Victoria has completely sorted out its local drug problem (like every other city in North America did before they embarked on their new arena projects), I will officially be boycotting events at the SOFMC.

I just never saw the connection between Stars-On-Ice and drug addiction until now.

[Baro]

We should also vote no on every new addition to our city's housing stock to make sure no one has a place to live and the existing units prices go even farther up.

[spanky123]

You've convinced me. Until Victoria has completely sorted out its local drug problem (like every other city in North America did before they embarked on their new arena projects), I will officially be boycotting events at the SOFMC.

I just never saw the connection between Stars-On-Ice and drug addiction until now.

How about this as a connection ...

Perhaps if RG paid the city the $1M operating fee they have owed for the past 3 years then the city would hve the money to help fund some of these programs!

[VicHockeyFan]

How about this as a connection ...

Perhaps if RG paid the city the $1M operating fee they have owed for the past 3 years then the city would hve the money to help fund some of these programs!

RG is not in default. I challenge you find me one shred of evidence that they owe the City money.

[aastra]

Perhaps if RG paid the city the $1M operating fee they have owed for the past 3 years then the city would hve the money to help fund some of these programs!

The city would also have the money ($1.6 million plus interest) if they hadn't lost that idiotic lawsuit regarding the original Songhees marina zoning. But I suppose that was good government?

Folks really need to get over the arena. It's an arena. It didn't usher in the end of the world. It was long overdue and tens of thousands of people have taken advantage of it to partake of all sorts of events that wouldn't have happened in Victoria without it.

[Mike K.]

It's an achievement on an under-achieving island. That's the problem with our arena.

[aastra]

It's really just a run-of-the-mill facility, but since some people are *still* griping about it I'm starting to respect the "achievement" aspect more and more.