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Chorneyko wants a more open Kimberley council
There appears to be a surge in civic pride in Kimberley, based on the number of new people coming forward to run for mayor and council in the upcoming November 19 election.
Reflective of that is David Chorneyko, who moved to the city five years ago with his wife Kathi and Sirius the dog, after a successful career in Edmonton as a chemical engineer.
Semi-retired at 43, Chorneyko said they wanted a slower pace and a smaller community to call home.
“We just figured we had enough. We could have moved anywhere in B.C. but we chose Kimberley,” he said, because of “the off the beaten path feel” and for its abundant recreational opportunities.
Almost immediately, Chorneyko began attending city council meetings “to get an idea on what was going on in the community.”
He also became involved with the Kimberley Nature Park, became a call rank member of the fire department and also belongs to Kimberley Search and Rescue.
And when he isn’t spending time in those pursuits, he is working on his Word Press blog Forest Crowne News, keeping his growing residential community abreast of issues there.
Chorneyko said he opted to run for office because his observations tell him more openness and engagement with the public is required from the city council.
“Greater engagement with the community would bring the quality of the operations up a level. It would bring accountability,” he told e-KNOW.
“We have a fairly old school, well-entrenched council. We need some new people in there,” Chorneyko said, adding, “I think, generally, the city operations are fairly well run.”
Chorneyko said he believes Kimberley can remain a vibrant city thanks to a diversifying economy, pointing at the Sun Mine as an important opportunity on the horizon.
“I think the Sun Mine is an incredible opportunity for Kimberley,” he said, noting that its “clean technology” will be a great driver for the city’s economy over the next 20 years.
However, Chorneyko pointed out that solar technology is currently not economical with grants to help it along – but he envisions the day when it will be more than economical.
The 200 megawatt proposed project will generate important revenue for the city, he continued, explaining that one megawatt would generate $200,000 in gross revenue a year.
“On full build out, that’s $40 million a year in revenue,” he exclaimed, adding that would also equate to about “40 good jobs.”
Chorneyko credits the city for considering the Sun Mine, but he also has some questions.
“I think they are doing the right thing but there is some concern about how open they have been. There also has to be comprehensive engineering reports, but I’m not seeing anything,” he said, wondering aloud how the city could ask the public to borrow $2 million without laying before them an engineering report.
“There must be one. I would hope so,” he laughed. “But there are lots of questions. If this is Teck (Cominco) land, how do they play into all this? And the carbon credits, where do they go?”
Chorneyko said if he was on council he would inform people about what the city was up to via his blog, noting he believes more politicians should be seizing the Internet medium to keep their constituents updated.
He has started a website – www.chorneyko.ca – for the election campaign and he said he’ll keep it live if elected.
“There is a comment tool (Disqus) on it and I am committed to writing blog posts on what I am doing on council. Kimberley is used to being engaged by council every three years. I will do it for three years,” he said, noting he believes such an effort would help the average taxpayer understand what it going on in city hall.
“I would explain why I voted yes or no and if you don’t like it you can comment on it, or even if you like it. I think that’s how you bring accountability to council. We have the tools and technology, we should use them,” he said, adding he believes it is time city council “had a few people who are tech savvy” because it is such a vital part of the world nowadays.
Going a step further, he said he believes wise leaders, in this day and age, have young mentors, as opposed to the traditional elder mentor.
“I’ve had some great mentors and that really helps,” he said.
“You need good relationships and I’m dedicated to creating those relationships” with the taxpayers, council and city administration, Chorneyko concluded.
Ian Cobb/e-KNOW
