I'm laser focused on pragmatic policy within local government control!
This is a plan to unstack the rules that have been stacked against affordability.
Our housing crisis is partly the result of choices we made regarding land use in the past. The story isn't unique: whether you have a degree, earned your Red Seal, have a skilled trade, or advanced in a career, many residents face restricted choices: limited and unaffordable detached homes, basements, a shoebox in the sky, or leaving the province and moving away from family.
Young professionals are leaving Port Coquitlam out of economic necessity because we have trapped ourselves in a “Tall or Small” cycle. Walk-ups, rowhomes, and small apartment buildings that we find throughout communities in PoCo have, over time, been made very difficult to replicate, even as council and senior levels of government are finally making slow progress.
If we want people to stay, we need to make it easier to approve the housing we already know works. Three- and four-storey walk-ups were built on ordinary lots across Port Coquitlam in abundance, creating affordable homes for residents because the rules allowed it once. Council can give families more choice, so people who grew up here can afford to stay close to the people they love.
Giving residents more abundant ways to get around means less competition on our roads, lower transportation costs, and more freedom to choose how we move around our city.
Getting around Port Coquitlam shouldn't be a major cost-of-living burden, but for many residents, owning and maintaining a car is effectively mandatory. The Northeast Sector, including PoCo, has some of the lowest transit ridership in the region, in part because our buses can be slow, infrequent, and unreliable.
This is compounded by transportation costs that are among the highest in the Lower Mainland. Residents can spend nearly $1,900 a month on car ownership and transportation, and not always by choice. When a bus is stuck in traffic or stops running before your shift ends, the alternative is often an expensive car trip.
Local government has tools to improve this. I'll support faster, more reliable transit through measures like transit signal priority, bus lanes, and bus bulbs, while expanding shared mobility options like Evo Car Share.
It's about giving residents the freedom to build the neighbourhood businesses we've already proven can work.
“Monopoly” has become a defining word in the Canadian economy, and nowhere is that more obvious than at the grocery checkout. The Competition Bureau itself has called for more grocery competition, while five conglomerates control roughly 80% of grocery sales in Canada. While this is primarily a federal issue, municipalities have a structural lever: Accessory Commercial Units (ACUs).
ACUs would allow residents to open small businesses in spaces they already have, such as a converted garage, a ground-floor room, or the corner of a residential lot, while still following building, health, and safety regulations. We used to have more of these neighbourhood businesses, such as corner stores, across Port Coquitlam, but decades of land-use rules separated our homes, shops, and workplaces into increasingly isolated areas, while making it easier for large firms to build more strip malls and big-box stores. Many of our corner stores are closing, and new community businesses aren't popping up to replace them.
That has a cost. When every errand requires a car, residents pay in fuel, maintenance, time, and congestion. Making small, independent businesses easier to open would give residents more choices closer to home, support local entrepreneurs, and create more third spaces where people can actually gather. This isn't about getting rid of cars or waiting years for another massive development.
I'll build on that by making municipal recreation programs free for children 12 and under.
Recreation is one of the areas where municipal government can make a direct difference in the cost of living. We've seen the excitement that comes when Canadians have the opportunity to participate in sport, from the FIFA World Cup to the Olympics, but that opportunity is becoming harder for families to afford. Registration fees, equipment, facility costs, and other expenses can add up quickly, and even a reasonable recreation fee can be the expense a family decides they simply can't afford that month.
I grew up playing soccer, and I know how much sport can give a kid: friends, confidence, teamwork, and a place in their community. We already have great recreation facilities in Port Coquitlam, and Council has shown that we can reduce barriers, including making our pools free for residents during the summer. If we want to improve affordability, support the wellbeing of our kids, and give every child a chance to find the sport they love, removing the cost barrier is a pretty good place to start.
We already have the tools to make our city more climate-resilient. We should use them.
Climate action doesn't have to mean asking residents to spend more. Some of the most practical climate measures a municipality can take can actually save people money and make our communities safer. Trees are a piece of public infrastructure, just like sidewalks, drainage, and roads. They provide shade during heat events, help manage stormwater, improve air quality, and reduce the amount of heat absorbed by our streets and homes.
Port Coquitlam is getting hotter, and our existing tree canopy is not keeping pace with that reality. I'll push for a stronger focus on expanding and properly replacing our tree canopy, with priority given to neighbourhoods facing the greatest heat and lack of shade. Preserving mature trees is often cheaper than replacing them, while better canopy coverage can reduce cooling costs and pressure on our drainage infrastructure.