Port Coquitlam mayoral candidates focus on business at Chamber debate

Port Coquitlam’s three mayoral candidates took part in an hour-long Q&A that covered business and some personal matters, with answers occasionally straying from the questions. Challenger Connor Fesenmaier said better transportation is needed to support business. “Congestion is an operating cost,” he said, pointing to the difficulty of getting in and out of the city. While the city has added left-turn signals and made intersection improvements, he said it needs larger infrastructure projects.

Mayor Brad West said projects are already underway. He cited the Kingsway upgrade, a major construction project involving a significant reconfiguration of an intersection that has frustrated many people. He also pointed to work on the Mary Hill Bypass and replacement of the Coquitlam River bridge. Challenger Pasquale Zampieri raised transportation issues on the city’s north side. He said the Fremont Connector would benefit areas beyond Port Coquitlam, so he would pursue cost-sharing and seek funding from senior levels of government. He would also prioritize practical ways to ease north-side congestion, including reviewing intersection performance, turning movements and transit service.

West replied that the Fremont Connector is on the city’s radar. He said construction has not begun because the city has been unable to reach a fair and reasonable cost-sharing arrangement with the City of Coquitlam. He said he would not have Port Coquitlam residents pay a disproportionate share. Fesenmaier said the city should be easy to reach, invest in and do business with.

Zampieri said that, if elected mayor, he would cut red tape and review permitting and development approval processes. He pointed to the strain growth can place on infrastructure and provincial housing legislation that allows multiple dwellings on a single lot. He said the city is still behind on addressing that requirement, and how to achieve affordability remains to be determined. Fesenmaier said the city should put a price on its own accountability: if businesses do not receive what they need within a reasonable time, he believes the city should reduce their business licence costs by a set percentage tied to the delay. He also called for greater transparency and a better understanding of businesses’ needs, saying government should recognize that waiting time has an economic cost.

Fesenmaier added that the city should protect key industrial land and encourage businesses ranging from manufacturing to technology. West said municipalities face “tremendous pressure” to convert industrial land to residential use, but Port Coquitlam has resisted. He cited employers including Saputo and Lordco Auto Parts that have moved to the city, saying those investments bring good-paying jobs. West also highlighted a hospitality roundtable where the city worked directly with businesses on a policy that included loosening liquor rules for special events and eliminating outdated regulations.

Zampieri and West offered different accounts of a meeting between them. Zampieri said it took him almost two months to get a meeting with West. According to Zampieri, West told him everyone was too afraid to run for mayor against him and that Zampieri would have a hard time if he tried. Zampieri said he decided to run for mayor at that meeting. He recalled responding that he could not believe a mayor would say that to him, and that he would take up the challenge because he wanted to make a difference.

West said he regularly meets residents and business owners but did not act as Zampieri described. He said the meeting took almost two months to arrange because Zampieri had several bylaw violations and was disputing the related tickets. West said Zampieri sought his intervention to cancel the bylaw fines, which he told him was not appropriate for a mayor. West added that the fines were ultimately upheld. The election is scheduled for Oct. 17.