Municipal election candidate Lilly Zekanovic believes that running for Town council is the responsible thing to do.
“Ever since my childhood I have been involved with municipal politics – it has been more or less a family motto – if you want your community to prosper, roll up the sleeves and be an active part in it or don’t complain.”
Zekanovic served on a town council in the 1980s. It had a completely different structure than Oliver, but she believes that mixing something old and something new will result in a unique experience with an enjoyable outcome.
She currently works at the constituency office of MP Alex Atamanenko.
“Working for our local MP provided me with a deeper view on problems that individuals in our communities are facing. That experience will guide me through some tough decisions that council has to deal with.”
Zekanovic was approached by several people asking her to consider running for Oliver council. It took some self-evaluating, but she decided to throw her hat in.
“I believe it is a responsible thing to do.”
Zekanovic said Oliver is a great community recognized as the Wine Capital of Canada. But she would like to show that the Town has more to offer than wine.
Zekanovic said affordable housing and a lack of good jobs have been a recurring theme in Oliver.
“We need to provide affordable housing for young families and our seniors.”
She said attracting more doctors to the community would also help.
“No matter what the issue, unless we pull together, it will remain an issue.”
Zekanovic said there have been some improvements in town, but she fails to see where council has identified a clear, long-term vision for the community.
“We can do better. By we I mean all five thousand of us living in Oliver and surrounding area.”
She noted that council has to decide what it wants Oliver to look like in 20 years and visualize what needs to be done to get there.
“Once that path is clear, the rest would follow, providing that the community and the local businesses are equal and constant partners in the process.”
Zekanovic said she loves discussions about the proposed national park.
“If we want to fence off the grounds in order to keep developers and everybody else out, I think there are better ways to do it.”
She stated if the community wants to attract tourists to the region through a national park reserve, then the park should be well planned and developed and accessible to all.
If the national park will cause a rise in property taxes and make living in the community too expensive, do we really want that? Zekanovic asked.
“I am all for preserving nature, preventing clear-cutting, wild development or flooding of Lower Similkameen, but that can be done through the regulations and law enforcement better than by simply fencing it off.”
Zekanovic said she really cares about Oliver.
“I know that every coin has three sides and I check them all before making a fair decision.”
She said she is not afraid to speak her mind, so the public would always know where she stands.
Lyonel Doherty
Oliver Chronicle
