One Nelson council incumbent is looking to be re-elected to a second term as Nelson city councillor after deciding against running for mayor
Keith Page says he wants to focus on issues that matter to residents and knows that housing is a huge issue.
“Housing is an interesting beast,” says Page. “Parts of the system are showing good signs of growth. There are increases in homeownership versus renting.”
Page agrees that numbers are moving in the right direction for housing; he knows that creating opportunities for those who cannot afford to buy must also be made.
“On a fundamental level we need to get clear on what people need,” he says. “Once we know that then we can develop projects and create opportunities.
“There is enough land in Nelson for thousands of units,” he adds.
Although Page knew he wanted to run for council again, he delayed submitting his nomination papers until the last moment because he was struggling with how he wanted to serve.
“I was going to run for the council table regardless,” says Page. “The question was was it going to be for mayor or councillor.”
He was looking for a reason to sway his decision one way or the other.
“I wanted to make sure it was right not just for me, but for the community in general,” he says. “There had to be a spiritual connection.”
Page is originally from Alberta, and came to Nelson in 2006 where he was drawn to how accepting the city was to various cultures and lifestyles.
“Being a queer youth in a small town I found Nelson very accepting,” says Page. “I was shocked by the sense of community in the community.”
Page is running against Ainsleah Hastings, Rik Logtenberg, Leslie Payne, Jesse Pineiro, Glenn Sutherland, Kate Tait and Jesse Woodward.