A familiar name wants to be mayor of Spallumcheen come November.
Former three-term councillor Dave Brew has announced he will run for mayor in the November election.
Brew, who served three terms as a councillor in the township, lost the 2011 mayoral election to fellow councillor Janice Brown by slightly more than 100 votes.
While Brew had been contemplating a potential return to political life, two things, he said, made him confirm his decision.
“The taxation on Class 9 farm tax; the province gave farmers a big break and Spallumcheen took it all away,” said Brew, referring to the township bylaw adopted this year that sees the farm class rate nearly double from 2013.
The township said the increase in the rate on farm class was to counteract the effects of provincial Bill 8, introduced in 2013, in which farmers enjoyed $120,000 of tax relief in 2013 that everybody else paid for.
The other thing that “really aggravated” Brew was his claim that council was “taking away people’s freedom of speech” in removing the question period segment at the end of regular meetings until after the November election.
“Anybody should be able to ask a question about anything that’s developed during that particular session,” said Brew. “That’s never been done before.”
Brown told The Morning Star in December that she planned to seek a second term as mayor.
