Coldstream Mayors Race: Garlick vs Firman

Sep 14, 2018 | 3:00 PM

Jim Garlick won’t win a fourth term as Coldstream mayor without a challenge.

Former councillor Bill Firman filed papers to run just hours before the nomination deadline on Friday.

The retired lawyer says Garlick is his friend, but he didn’t want to see him win another term by acclamation.

“I disapprove of that. I disapproved of it the last time. There has got to be competition for the mayor’s position. I don’t have any axe to grind with Garlick — like I said, he’s a friend of mine — but this is politics eh?” Firman told Beach Radio News.

Firman has one specific area of concern.

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“It’s no secret when I was there for a couple of terms (2005-2011) that I was concerned about pollution of Coldstream Creek and Kal Lake. And I did everything I could to (push) for that position, and I just want to reinforce it.”

Firman is also against removing land from the Agricultural Land Reserve for housing, saying farm land is the future of Coldstream.

“Just look at the hundreds of acres of orchard, and now there is a vegetable thing going on in Lavington (Veg-Pro salad products plant on former Coldstream Ranch Land), so basically there has been protection, but I intend to continue that.”

Firman says he first came to Coldstream in 1946 as a child, and has also lived in Vancouver and Prince George.

He retired as a lawyer in 2015.

Seven people are running for the six councillor positions in Coldstream, including five incumbents (Pat Cochrane, Doug Dirk, Glen Taylor, Richard Enns, Gyula Kiss) and newcomers Ruth Hoyte and Stephanie Hoffman.

Photo of Bill Firman courtesy of Kamloops Daily News

by Corey Fischer