Two Boundary politicians were singled out for mention in the premier’s address to the Union of BC Municipalities convention.
“I don’t think you can see the bruises from where you’re sitting,” David Eby joked Friday following a meeting with Regional District of Kootenay Boundary chair Grace McGregor. “She used a phone book.”
Eby said McGregor was “explicit in her concern about the pressures that provincial government policy put on small regional governments and the need for our government to constantly be on guard for the impacts that our policies have on the ability of local governments to deliver services quickly and affordably to the residents that you serve.”
He added that McGregor has been a “tireless advocate” for a community forest in her community, and that when it is finally realized, it should be called the Grace McGregor Community Forest.
“And if I don’t [follow through], she’ll have a place to put the body,” he quipped. “I’m a little afraid of her.”
In an interview today, McGregor chuckled about Eby’s comments. “I know him well enough that he knows he could get away with saying he’s scared of me,” she said.
McGregor and RDKB staff had a 15-minute meeting with Eby on Thursday, enough time to raise the issues of government downloading in general as well as the community forest and the future of the Columbia and Western Trail.
She said the meeting went well. She came prepared with a list of items that she said the provincial government had put on the backs of local government, and stressed the need to work together on them. She said Eby told her he understood.
“It ended up being a really good conversation. So was I surprised when he mentioned that in his address to UBCM? Yeah, I was.”
McGregor said as long as you are polite, there is no reason why you can’t be direct or express strong opinions, especially when you are representing an entire region, as she was. She also had a chance to speak to forests minister Ravi Parmar during last week’s conference.
McGregor, who is not seeking re-election after serving as Christina Lake’s regional district director since 2005, said the meeting with Eby was the third or fourth time she’s had a one-on-one with a BC premier. She previously met with Christy Clark and Gordon Campbell.
She said face-to-face meetings with provincial politicians can be effective, although building relationships with the bureaucrats who carry out the work is equally important.
Eby’s speech also mentioned Grand Forks mayor Everett Baker, who told him about how the city is subsidizing the local medical clinic’s overhead for 18 months in a bid to recruit more medical professionals.
Baker told his city council today that it is encouraging that the Boundary is on the province’s radar.
“Our brand is strong within government,” he said. “That’s not something we should take lightly. Of all the communities [Eby] saw throughout the week, the fact that he would talk about Christina Lake and Grand Forks was quite amazing.”
