A former Castlegar mayor is seeking the same job in Grand Forks.
Kirk Duff has announced he will run for the position in this fall’s election. Incumbent Everett Baker has already indicated he will seek re-election.
Duff said he is running to give back to the community and not because he has any grievances with the way the city is being run.
“I wish to be at the table to help make the decisions, not just be on the side of having to live with them,” he said. “And I think with my 21½ years of political experience, I have a lot to offer still, and I would love to do it right here in my hometown.”
Duff was elected mayor of Castlegar in a by-election in 2021 but did not seek re-election in 2022, citing health reasons. He and his wife retired to Grand Forks at the end of his term. He says his health has since improved.
Duff previously served many years as a councillor in Castlegar and in Kimberley. He said the skills he learned as an elected official in those places are “definitely transferrable.”
“It’s just people are different,” he said. “Some situations are different, some issues are different. But how to deal with them and how to work with the community, council, and city staff, those skills are transferable to any municipality in BC.”
Duff said he expects to get a head-start on door-knocking to learn what issues residents find important. But he pointed to the city’s flood mitigation project as an example of a project involving multiple levels of government that was carried out effectively.
He said the mayor and council should be hands-on and engaged with what different city departments are doing with taxpayers’ money, adding it’s not enough to rubber-stamp a budget without understanding where money is coming from and what it’s used for.
Since moving to Grand Forks, Duff has joined the board of directors for the Grand Forks International baseball tournament and is the security lead. He is also on the Grand Forks Art Gallery board, has volunteered for Habitat for Humanity in their ReStore, has joined the Royal Canadian Legion, and is involved with the Border Bruins.
While a few people have served on councils in multiple West Kootenay/Boundary municipalities, no one has ever served as mayor of more than one place. Mark McLaren, who was mayor of Warfield from 1983-85, ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Nelson in 1993.
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