In the wake of Councillor Ray Peters’s death two weeks ago, the District of Squamish is gearing up for another election.
The by-election will be held on Saturday, June 24 to fill Peters’s seat on council.
Squamish Mayor Ian Sutherland said there has been some speculation on who will run but he had not heard from anyone directly.
"Truthfully the last week has been more spent on issues with Ray’s family than it has been on worrying about by-elections," said Sutherland Monday. "That will all play out over time."
Peters passed away March 30 at the Squamish General Hospital after a battle with cancer. He was 60 years old.
The community paid tribute to the councillor at a Celebration of Life on Friday, April 7, followed by a run/walk/ride on Sunday along the Cheekeye Fan Trail, which was renamed the Ray Peters Trail.
The outpouring of support from the community is testament to the man, said the mayor.
"It shows the level of love in the community for Ray because the turnout for every event for the week – the funeral on Tuesday, the Celebration of Life on Friday, the trail on Sunday – all of them had tremendous turnout from the community, from a whole cross section of the community," said Sutherland. "It was pretty neat stuff."
Peters ran with Sutherland and three others as part of the New Directions slate in 2005. They were the only two to be elected in November’s election, down from four New Directions members elected in the previous election.
Sutherland could not say if one of the New Directions candidates would run again.
"I’m sure there will be many people coming forward who have an interest in running and at the end of the day the best person will win the race," he said.
With Saturday, June 24 as the general voting day, staff has set the nomination period from May 9 to 19. Advance voting is June 14 and 17.
