Prince George Mayor Lyn Hall has officially announced his re-election campaign for this October's 2018 municipal election.
With his family by his side, and a crowd of supporters and media in attendance, Hall announced his re-election campaign Thursday on the steps of city hall.
Hall has been the mayor of Prince George since he won the leadership race in 2014, after serving as a city councillor since 2011. Hall began his political career as a trustee on school board for School District 57, where he served for a decade, including two years as a vice chair and five years as chair.
Mayor Lyn Hall poses with his family after announcing his re-election campaign for the 2018 local election. (via Hanna Petersen).“I said in 2014 that after many months of rumour and speculation I was running for Mayor,” says Hall, “I’m not sure this particular announcement is full of rumours, but today I am so proud to be in front of all of you to formally announce my intent to run as a candidate for re-election for the mayor of the city of Prince George.”
In his speech Hall addressed a number of issues he and city council have tackled over the last four years, including infrastructure, education, housing, downtown revitalization and economic development.
Infrastructure
Hall says over the last four years city council has invested over 24 million dollars in refurbishing roads, over three million in refurbishing sidewalks, over 150 thousand in refurbishing walkways, and over 27 million in snow removal.
“It’s important to talk about these particular issues because they are what we hear loud and clear year after year as city councillors,” says Hall.
Housing
Hall cited a number of housing development projects in Prince George have recently been completed or currently underway.
“The Park House condo development is something we are extremely proud to have in Prince George. It was a necessity and we needed it and here we have it,” says Hall, adding “We have Aboriginal housing on sixth avenue, low-barrier housing on 3rd Avenue and construction of multifamily housing on Grady Road.”
He said they will continue to work with non-profit organizations, the province, and the federal government to enhance housing projects in Prince George.
Education
Hall says he and council have strengthened relationships over the last four years with UNBC, CNC, and School District 57.
“They are an important component of how we attract people to Prince George. Without a strong partnership and stakeholder engagement with those three organizations it makes it tougher to attract people to Prince George,” says Hall.
Downtown Revitalization
“Every election the question is what are you going to do about revitalization in downtown,” says Hall, and as he points to the construction behind him, he adds “Just look behind you I am going to point out a few things we have done in downtown over the last few years.”
Hall mentioned The UNBC Wood Laboratory, The Farmers Market, Homework, and the soon-to-be relocation of Studio 2880 as well as various pubs and restaurants that have opened up downtown.
“We have approximately, and I’m being conservative, 70 million dollars’ worth of development t in our downtown,” says Hall, adding that the demolishment of the RCMP building, as well as two other buildings on George Street, will offer future development sites.
“There’s no question there is work to do in our downtown,” says Hall, adding “We deal with the homelessness issue, we deal with the mental illness issue, the drug issue, we have been dealing with that head-on. We have been working on that for probably a year-and-half or two years and it is a tough, tough thing to deal with but we are making progress.”
Economic Growth
Hall says building development has been a key factor in the city’s economic success over the last few years.
“From 2015 to the end of June in 2018 we have had over 400 million dollars’ worth of building development in Prince George,” says Hall, adding “We are very fortunate to have a tremendous amount of private sector investment in our city which bodes well for us as it creates a strong foundation and it really is a measurement of how our economy is doing.”
What’s next?
Hall says his focus in the campaign will be to “continue to have an engaged council with community, build sound infrastructure, provide recreational and arts opportunities, build on what we have achieved over the past years and continue to make a vibrant city and a place that people want to come live and do business. “
He added that he wants to continue to foster private sector investment that will create jobs, “which means young workers can stay in Prince George, find jobs, buy homes and vehicles and provide for their families.”
He says he will continue to focus on social development including affordable housing, senior housing, low barrier, low-income options, and will continue to maintain to upgrade roads sidewalks and infrastructure
“And most importantly stay connected to the residents of Prince George,” says Hall, adding “Without question I look forward to four more years.”
As of his announcement on Sept. 6, Hall is running uncontested for the 2018 mayoral race.
