It’s a Bazinet family rule, says Brent Bazinet, council candidate with the Vancouver Civic Action Team (vcaTEAM). “In my family, you either support someone [running for office], get involved yourself, or shut up.”
Since shutting up wasn’t an appealing option, Bazinet decided to toss his hat into Vancouver’s political ring.
The only question was, which party should he align himself with? Bazinet says he quickly ruled out the Non-Partisan Association (NPA) because of its “insane” penchant for over-regulation, and the Coalition of Progressive Electors (COPE) just wasn’t his thing. So, having discarded the idea of running as an independent, he joined the new vcaTEAM.
If elected, Bazinet says he’ll focus on implementing the four-pillar drug strategy, including its safe injection sites; pushing for more social housing; and setting up a ward system so councillors will be directly accountable to specific neighbourhoods.
Bazinet also plans to tackle the transportation question. Vancouver, and particularly its downtown core, is too geared towards cars, he says. That has to change. He wants to see new bike lanes, connecting downtown to the rest of Vancouver, within the next three years.
And then there’s the question of fun. To Bazinet, step one on the path to a fun city lies just beyond a heap of discarded red tape.
“Get rid of the bloody regulations,” he says. “They’re not necessary. They’re paternalistic.”
Festival organizers should be encouraged, not dissuaded by obstacle after obstacle, Bazinet says. Other cities not only support their festivals, they give them financial incentives, as well. Vancouver needs to either support its festivals or, at the very least, “get out of the way.”
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