Candidates answer Revelstoke’s questions

Revelstoke Mountaineer asked readers what their top questions and concerns would be for Revelstoke candidates leading up to the 2024 provincial election. Housing, affordability, infrastructure and future plans for resource industries were top of mind for folks. Here are the Columbia River – Revelstoke candidate answers to your questions. Responses from candidates have been lightly edited for grammar and length.

Due to Revelstoke’s draw as a resort municipality, outdoor offerings and small town feel, the population has grown rapidly. How would your party support Revelstoke in the development of housing and supportive infrastructure?

Scott McInnis, Conservative Party of BC candidate: For many obvious reasons, Revelstoke is a place people want to live. Combined with the fact there isn’t much land left to build on, it leaves the town in a position where the housing market is going to continue to be very strong for the foreseeable future. John Rustad has promised the largest tax cut for homeowners and renters in B.C.’s history to help alleviate the cost of shelter for all British Columbians. Those with a mortgage or renting will be eligible for a tax credit of up to $3,000 a month starting in early 2026. Without question, this will provide huge savings for folks in Revelstoke who have extremely high living expenses. We will be rolling out more creative solutions as the campaign unfolds. 

Calvin Beauchesne, BC Green Party candidate: The BC Greens recognize we need to build lots more non-profit housing to address the housing crisis. We have let the private sector control the housing market which has resulted in large profits for real estate corporations while rent and the cost of buying a home continues to go up. The BC Greens are also proposing vacancy control which would prevent landlords from unfairly evicting tenants for the sole purpose of raising the rent. B.C. has one of the highest eviction rates in Canada for this reason as most evictions in B.C. are for no-fault reasons for tenants. New zoning bylaws to allow multi-unit homes in municipalities like Revelstoke can also help alleviate some strain on the housing market.

Andrea Dunlop, BC NDP candidate: Revelstoke is a great place to live, but housing is too expensive – especially in rapidly-growing towns like ours. Everyone should be able to afford a home and build a good life here. That’s why David Eby is standing up to speculators and has an action plan experts say will create 300,000 new middle-class homes across the province. Rents are coming down in Vancouver because of the leadership of the NDP and the same can be done in Revelstoke. We know the policies work; they just need to be implemented here.

We’re taking action by cutting red tape, breaking down barriers to construction, using public land to build more middle-class housing and making it easier for people to rent out secondary and basement suites. We’re seeing real results, with housing construction at record highs, and we can’t stop now.

Currently, Revelstoke’s living wage is far above the average wage in town. General affordability of groceries, gas and rent is a stressor for many. How would you support the municipality in creating a more sustainable cost of living and what ways would your party be supporting affordability across the province?

Scott McInnis, Conservative Party of BC candidate: Combined with the Rustad Rebate on housing, we have also committed to eliminating the carbon tax and fuel emission standard on petrol. Even David Eby has admitted now that the Carbon Tax hurts us all. The Conservative Party of BC will eliminate the tax altogether. These two initiatives will save consumers at the pump, on groceries and other consumables we need. 

Calvin Beauchesne, BC Green Party candidate: The BC Greens are proposing a windfall tax on oil companies to help reign in some of their record profits. Oil companies have been making record profits while people are getting gouged at the pump. The same could be said for grocery store companies and real estate companies. A windfall tax provincially would raise millions of dollars which could then be invested in communities to help people struggling in this affordability crisis. 

The BC Greens are also proposing closing the loopholes in the carbon tax so that 100 per cent of emissions by big industrial polluters would be charged a levy; this increased revenue would be used to increase the rebates people are receiving in B.C. The BC Greens are also proposing a portion of this revenue be invested back in communities. We need to do our part to tackle the climate crisis by investing in clean energy sources; the climate crisis is raising both the cost of food and home insurance across the province. The BC Greens are also proposing banning Real Estate Investment Trusts and increase the income threshold for the Rental Assistance Program and Shelter Aid for Elderly Renters.

Andrea Dunlop, BC NDP candidate: Folks here in Revelstoke work hard to build a secure future for themselves and their families, and they deserve to get ahead. We know it’s tough right now – global inflation and high interest rates are hiking costs, and corporate gouging and real estate speculators are making things worse. That’s why David Eby is taking action to lower costs, build a strong economy and help people here to get ahead. 

We’ve doubled the BC Family Benefit, cut childcare costs in half on average and reduced ICBC rates by $500 before freezing them. We need to keep taking action to help people build a good life for themselves and their families, here in the community they love. 

Revelstoke has historically been a resource town, with a strong connection to logging in the region. Over the years concerns regarding the protection of Old Growth forests have been coupled with worries on how Revelstoke could transition away from a forestry focus that does not leave workers and their families without a path forward. How will your party protect old growth forests while also supporting the forestry industry in B.C. to transition into sustainable forest management? How would you communicate with Revelstoke residents about these plans?

Scott McInnis, Conservative Party of BC candidate: John Rustad has put forward a common sense approach to forestry which is sustainable, regenerative and resilient. A couple of highlights are: the immediate halt to aerial spraying of glysophates, enhanced biodiversity goals related to promoting wildlife/habitat and fire resilience and to replace stumpage fees for a finished product tax. We’ve listened to biologists, foresters and wildfire experts and have drafted a plan which will ensure forests are managed with a science-first approach, but realising this industry needs help to be profitable.

Calvin Beauchesne, BC Green Party candidate: We could start by implementing the recommendations of the Old Growth Strategic Review Panel to reform the forestry industry to make it more sustainable and long-term driven. These recommendations will help the forestry industry to continue to exist while taking into account things like biodiversity protection and ecosystem health. We can still have a forestry industry in B.C. while protecting our old growth; but with a profit-driven industry this isn’t often of interest to CEOs and investors. We do need immediate action to protect our old growth in BC. though. The area around Revelstoke has some of the last remaining old growth not even in Canada, but in the world. Threatened species like woodland caribou depend on these ecosystems for their survival. Revelstoke also has a thriving tourist industry which is booming and presents many economic opportunities for the people who live here. 

Andrea Dunlop, BC NDP candidate: Forestry is foundational to B.C., and we are determined to support forestry workers and communities like Revelstoke. Long before the ski hill, long before the Trans-Canada Highway and the tourism they brought in, forestry was a major industry here and we will work with industry to ensure it is here for years to come. We know that forestry communities across B.C. are facing big challenges – low lumber prices, punishing softwood lumber tariffs, the end of the beetle kill harvest and unprecedented wildfires. That’s why David Eby is taking action to build a strong forestry sector, with good jobs for the long term. We’re protecting local jobs by curbing raw log exports, incentivizing wood building and mass timber and supporting made-in-B.C. wood products. And we’re taking action to conserve more ancient forests for our children and grandchildren, while supporting sustainable local forestry jobs for workers and communities.

One of Revelstoke’s future developments, Johnson Heights, is currently only accessible via the Trans Canada Highway east of the city. It has been a spot of numerous accidents, including six accidents within a three-week span. How will you and your party work to twin the highway around Revelstoke? How will your party work with the City of Revelstoke to develop a safer transition from the Trans Canada Highway to the Johnson Heights neighbourhood?

Scott McInnis, Conservative Party of BC candidate: Traffic safety is a major concern of Revelstokians and rightfully so. One of my top priorities as your MLA will be to work closely with the municipal government and Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure to come-up with a set of strategies to address this specific area and many others along Highway One which are very treacherous.

Calvin Beauchesne, BC Green Party candidate: The BC Greens would work with the City of Revelstoke to develop a safer transition from the Trans Canada highway to Johnston Heights neighbourhood in whichever way they choose. The BC Greens are also proposing free and increased public transit in B.C. to get more people out of cars, which would reduce the number of fatalities from car accidents.

Andrea Dunlop, BC NDP candidate: I believe that the current Johnson Heights / Highway One intersection is unsafe, and needs to be either redeveloped or removed, with a road to the eastern access replacing it. That’s going to take collaboration between the city, province, Parks Canada and the federal government – for my part, if elected, I’ll be a passionate advocate for local priorities like this.

Importantly, to move forward, all three levels of government need to believe in supporting growing communities like Revelstoke. David Eby and the BC NDP are building roads and investing in badly-needed infrastructure across our province. No matter your preferred solution to the Johnson Heights intersection, the BC NDP are the better partner in identifying, funding and ensuring that solution gets built.

What are the three things you have in mind that you personally want to accomplish? Do you have connections that will support you in these goals?

Scott McInnis, Conservative Party of BC candidate: Access to Alberta Health for critical care needs. Get housing built in each community that needs it. Attract additional professionals and their families to the area whether in healthcare, education or trades. We need workers!

Calvin Beauchesne, BC Green Party candidate: I would like to see more intercity transit among rural communities in B.C. Lots of people have to travel far distances for medical appointments and for people that don’t drive it’s a real challenge. I would also like to see better climate adaptation measures in this riding. While we should do everything we can to fight the climate crisis, at least some of its effects are inevitable now; we need to invest in wildfire risk reduction projects, cooling centres, air conditioning from heat pumps and air filtration systems in public schools. I would also love to see a universal mental health care system in this riding and across B.C. A lot of people are struggling with mental health issues now due to climate grief, unaffordability and social media and we need to make sure those who want to get treatment can. Investing in mental health is an investment in society; we can reduce homelessness and drug use by investing in mental health.

Andrea Dunlop, BC NDP candidate: Affordable housing so that everyone who lives here can find high quality, secure housing that they can afford – and so that local employers can recruit and retain good employees. Strengthening healthcare, including transport for specialist appointments. We are an enormous riding. We are blessed with a good number of doctors. Considering the distance to specialists and factoring that into our collective healthcare approach is an area upon which we need to build. Healthcare should always be there when people need it. We have to keep taking action to help people get ahead and feel secure – far too many people here are struggling with the impacts of global inflation and high interest rates. If elected, I’ll be squarely on people’s side, alongside David Eby and the BC NDP team.