Every September council attends the Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM) convention.
The UBCM Convention is the main forum for B.C. communities where policies addressing the issues that small, medium and large cities face across British Columbia are developed. Policy positions created by members by region are discussed directly with ministers and provincial staff who shape the future direction of government, which in turn results in support for our community.
In addition to policy development, council attends seminars on social issues, housing, healthcare, policing, climate change, green energy and a myriad of topics relative to the challenges B.C. communities are facing. The value of learning from the challenges and successes of other B.C. communities and being able to share our experiences provides great insight on how to move our community forward.
Local governments are a subset of the provincial government and residents often confuse provincial or federal mandates with many of the local issues we face.
Having a presence at UBCM or locally at our regional organization, the Southern Interior Local Government Association (SILGA), ensures your voice is heard. We compete for funding, programs and initiatives alongside every other community or regional district in B.C. and have limited opportunities to lobby provincial leaders directly.
This year we will meet with various ministers and their staff to discuss everything from policing, prolific offenders and intermittent sentencing, homelessness, housing, mental health, climate change, fire/flood recovery and cycling infrastructure.
We have had a great track record of success at UBCM meetings such as the $312 million hospital expansion, welding classroom at Okanagan College, funding for a Community Active Support Table, shared services study and over $15-million in B.C. housing projects approved in 2018.
Every business has challenges and council has and will make mistakes; there is no growth without risk, but if we learn from the past and consistently apply these lessons to the future, we will continue build a strong and inclusive community.
There is nothing more rewarding and challenging than community service. We will always be faced with difficult decisions that sometimes unite and sometimes divide the community. The only easy problem is yesterday’s problem. It is how a council works together to deal with adversity that should define their success and what a council should be measured against when looking towards the future.
As the election cycle begins I hope interested candidates and citizens take the time to understand the roles and responsibilities of local government.
It is easy to get caught up with election rhetoric which often focuses around issues outside the city’s jurisdiction or mandate. If the federal government shut down today, it would probably take a month or two before you’d notice. If the provincial government shut down today, it would probably take you a week or two to notice. If your local government shut down today you’d notice it immediately. We are the level of government that impacts our daily lives the most.
When people with the best of intentions to help move our community forward step up to serve as an elected official it is a good thing. When people who have opinions and passions for the community choose not to get involved in helping our community move forward, we all suffer. We all have a part to play in leveraging Penticton’s potential.
Andrew Jakubeit is the mayor of Penticton and provides the Western News with a column twice a month. Contact him via email Andrew.Jakubeit@penticton.ca. Follow him on Twitter @AndrewJakubeit