Martin Kendell

Independent candidate for Burnaby North

Affordability

Childcare

We must continue to invest in a reliable and affordable childcare

We need to continue to encourage all new property development around the province to provide affordable space in their complexes to house childcare facilities that are close to the places that people live.

We must also ensure that sufficient funding is provided to train people to fill the thousands of Early Childcare Educator positions that will be required to provide safe and reliable childcare to working parents. One area of opportunity is to introduce introductory ECE courses to high school students so they can get a jump on post secondary training and get into the workforce sooner.

The province should offer tax credits that allow one parent the opportunity to scale back to part time work in order to care for their child or children until they enter elementary school. In the long run, these tax credits can save money over having to heavily subsidize spaces in these $10-a- day childcare facilities and allow parents the opportunity to bond with their offspring for longer than the 12 to 18 months they receive through parental leave.

Public transit

We must fund a transit system that will reduce car dependency and slow global warming

A dependable and robust transit system is one of the best investments that this province can make in order to slow global warming and reduce the dependence on single passenger vehicles that are increasingly clogging our roads across BC.

The government of British Columbia is losing precious tax revenue which was used to pay for mass transit as more and more people switch over to electric and hybrid vehicles. To counter this, BC should consider implementing usage fees on all vehicles by weight and distance travelled that will pay for transit alternatives while encouraging people to get out of their personal vehicles and using more efficient forms of transportation.

After the Surrey Skytrain extension is complete in late 2029, the Province of British Columbia should continue investing in rapid transit by building a north/south Skytrain line from North Vancouver along Hastings Street and Willingdon Avenue to Metrotown Station to support large amounts of population growth along those corridors. The province and Translink also need to invest in more buses to make sure a growing ridership can be moved efficiently across the transit system.

Climate Change & the Environment

Public transit

We must fund a transit system that will reduce car dependency and slow global warming

A dependable and robust transit system is one of the best investments that this province can make in order to slow global warming and reduce the dependence on single passenger vehicles that are increasingly clogging our roads across BC.

The government of British Columbia is losing precious tax revenue which was used to pay for mass transit as more and more people switch over to electric and hybrid vehicles. To counter this, BC should consider implementing usage fees on all vehicles by weight and distance travelled that will pay for transit alternatives while encouraging people to get out of their personal vehicles and using more efficient forms of transportation.

After the Surrey Skytrain extension is complete in late 2029, the Province of British Columbia should continue investing in rapid transit by building a north/south Skytrain line from North Vancouver along Hastings Street and Willingdon Avenue to Metrotown Station to support large amounts of population growth along those corridors. The province and Translink also need to invest in more buses to make sure a growing ridership can be moved efficiently across the transit system.

Walkable, bikable communities

We must invest in mobility (bike) lanes that will get cyclists and eScooter riders to their destination quickly and safely.

Education

K-12 learning needs

We must proactively invest in safe schools

The BC Liberal and BCNDP governments of the past 25 years have made grievous mistakes when it comes to planning elementary and secondary school capacities to match the large amount of population growth in North Burnaby due to the construction of dozens of high-rise apartments near the Gilmore and Brentwood Skytrain stations. As a result, the BCNDP has been scrambling like crazy over the past 24 months to build prefabricated additions to the majority of schools in the riding that are already bursting at the seams.

The provincial government needs to communicate more effectively with municipal governments to make sure that appropriately sized schools are ready to go in parts of this municipality that are currently undergoing major development. We must also invest in the proper training and compensation of teachers, administrators and educational aides to make sure all students are adequately supported.

As well, any new or renovated schools should have state of the art ventilation systems in order to slow the spread of respiratory diseases such as pneumonia and COVID, and help keep students, teachers and their respective families happier and healthier.

Healthcare

Drugs and addiction

We need to provide safe and reliable housing so addicted people can get the help they desperately need.

The biggest public safety concern in Burnaby is the disastrous BCNDP policies when it comes to the consumption and distribution of hard drugs such as fentanyl and other opioids that are causing a majority of British Columbians to feel unsafe in their own communities. Crime, random violence and vandalism are fuelling these concerns within our municipality and needs to be addressed immediately.

We need to do a substantially better job when it comes to providing shelter and resources to the vulnerable unhoused population in this province. Without safe and reliable shelter, these people cannot seek treatment of the trauma they have suffered along with the resulting substance abuse.

Health staffing

We need to reform a bloated and inefficient health system and provide more funding for front line staff.

We need to revamp a bloated and inefficient health care system by streamlining six health regions into one provincial authority and removing a level of bureaucracy that is stealing money that could be used for front line services to benefit BC residents.

Housing & Homelessness

Drugs and addiction

We need to provide safe and reliable housing so addicted people can get the help they desperately need.

The biggest public safety concern in Burnaby is the disastrous BCNDP policies when it comes to the consumption and distribution of hard drugs such as fentanyl and other opioids that are causing a majority of British Columbians to feel unsafe in their own communities. Crime, random violence and vandalism are fuelling these concerns within our municipality and needs to be addressed immediately.

We need to do a substantially better job when it comes to providing shelter and resources to the vulnerable unhoused population in this province. Without safe and reliable shelter, these people cannot seek treatment of the trauma they have suffered along with the resulting substance abuse.

Home construction and supply

We need to invest in faster and more efficient home building methods.

We need to investigate and invest in smarter, cheaper, faster and more efficient methods of home building such as 3D printing and prefabricated housing.

Home purchases and ownership

We need to invest in co-op housing and rent to own housing programs

We need to encourage ownership options such as building co-op housing to accommodate low-income people and creating rent to own housing programs to help young families.

Rental housing

We need to make sure good landlords can find good tenants, and vice versa.

This province is full of renters who have had terrible luck when it comes to finding a quality rental property with a landlord who isn't an absolute nightmare. On the other end of the equation, some well meaning landlords get stuck with horrendous tenants who trash the place and refuse to pay their rent. Either situation is unacceptable, and the BC government can do more to help both landlords and renters when it comes to this tedious and life altering process.

I would like to make sure the RTB has the sufficient funding and staffing needed to make sure cases are heard in a timely manner.

Another thing I would like to do is create a provincial network where decent rental properties can be listed, and linked to respectful people who will take care of their property. If you are a slumlord or engage in undesirable and abusive conduct with your tenant, you're out. If you're a tenant who doesn't pay their rent, has loud parties and destroys the rental property, you're out. Eventually the best of the best remain, and they deal with each other with a degree of trust and respect.

Jobs, Businesses, & Labour

Startups and small businesses

We need a safer environment where small businesses can thrive in British Columbia.

Disastrous BCNDP policies when it comes to the consumption and distribution of hard drugs such as fentanyl and opioids along with corresponding higher rates of homelessness are wreaking havoc on our business sector. Petty crime, random violence and vandalism are driving small businesses into insolvency, which provides employment to 41 percent of the workforce in British Columbia.

We need to do a much better job when it comes to providing proper shelter to the vulnerable unhoused population in this province. Without safe and reliable shelter, these people are forced to live in horrendous conditions that make the consumption of drugs and alcohol almost mandatory, and fuels an environment makes the physical and psychological trauma they have suffered worse. On top of that, it costs substantially more to provide the social services and support networks to these unhoused people over one where mental health services can be built around and provided to people who want to get better.

We must provide incentives and tax breaks for small businesses to make sure they can pay their staff, pay their rent and invest in their livelihood. We need to encourage and grow a robust new economy that focuses on greener solutions that will benefit the next generations of British Columbians with good jobs and lead the way in Canadian driven innovation in markets worldwide.



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Biography

submitted by the candidate or their team
I have been a proud Burnaby resident for 22 years, and want this amazing municipality to be safe, clean and livable for its residents.

I was born in Prince George then moved to Maple Ridge when I was 12. I then became a broadcaster and bounced around to Nelson and Fort St John. I came back and moved into a 2 bedroom apartment in the Lougheed Town Centre area from 2001 to 2006, then moved to the Gilmore area in 2007.

I am proud to act as an advocate in the Gilmore neighbourhood and in this community. I created the Clean Up Burnaby Campaign in 2021 because there was garbage at all the playgrounds and parks I went to with my two children. I am proud to report that over 3,000 pounds of garbage has been removed from the streets, parks, medians, forests and creeks around Burnaby.

Reason for running

submitted by the candidate or their team
I want to leave a better and more equitable BC for our next generations of British Columbians.

martinkendell.ca martinkendell.ca



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