The next Regional District of Kootenay Boundary board will have at least five new faces when it is sworn in next month.
Current directors and staff paid tribute this week to those who are departing:
• Chair and Christina Lake director Grace McGregor, who did not seek re-election.
• Trail director Terry Martin, who lost his bid for mayor.
• Midway director Richard Dundsdon, who also lost his bid for mayor.
• Greenwood director John Bolt, who did not seek re-election as mayor.
• Fruitvale director Bill Wenman, who did not seek re-election as councillor.
“You don’t realize how far things come until you take a break,” Wenman said, noting that he served two three-year terms on Fruitvale council, then after a break returned for two four-year terms.
“Local government politics has come a long way. Staff have come a long way. This is a lot better place than it was in the ’90s, and it’s a hell of a lot better than it was in the 2000s. So congratulations to this board and the staff. I really enjoyed my my time.”
Dundson said he has “taken a lot of good things back to Midway, and I think I’ve made Midway a better place in some respects, just for what I’ve learned here.”
McGregor said she is a “big believer” in regional districts: “There isn’t one cent we spend that we can’t account for. We don’t move money. We don’t play with it. We tell people where the dollars went.”
She added that she doesn’t “retire very easily” and she expects to continue to be involved with the Rural BC Project, initiated by the BC Rural Centre, which McGregor chairs.
Returning Beaver Valley director Ali Grieve, who was first elected in 2005 alongside McGregor, paid tribute to her colleague: “Thank you for all the work you have done for rural communities across BC. I can’t stress that part enough. Your dedication to so many projects has made a lasting difference.”
Rupert Oldroyd has been elected to take McGregor’s place as director.
Three other rural directors will also return: Linda Worley (Columbia River), Linda Kay Wiese (rural Grand Forks), and Sharen Gibbs (West Boundary).
Four municipal directors may or may not be back. They have been re-elected but would need to be appointed by their councils to the RDKB board: Mike Walsh (Montrose), Andy Morel (Rossland), Everett Baker (Grand Forks), and Frank Marino (Warfield).
The new board will be sworn in on Nov. 9. A new chair will also be chosen that day.
