Sam Van Schie
Rossland News
After a six year break from municipal politics, veteran city councillor Lloyd McLellan is seeking to re-claim his spot at the council table.
McLellan previously served nine years on Rossland council. He was elected in 1996 and again in 1999. In 2002 he ran unsuccessfully for mayor, but then returned as a councillor in 2005. He retired his seat in 2008, expecting he was finished with politics.
But after seeing the changes that have occurred at City Hall since he left, he’d like to get back to the table and help get Rossland back on the right track.
“It’s no use sitting on the sidelines and complaining,” he says. “I’d rather go in there and see if I can get things going back in the right direction.”
Though McLellan is 76 years old, he says he still has lots of energy and feels great, aside from a recent knee replacement that has him walking with a temporary limp.
“I think I still have a lot to contribute,” he says. “When I left council, I felt we were on the cutting edge. We were the first to have a design review committee and first to get into strategic planning. We had a number of very strong initiatives and a lot of good things were happening.”
Now, McLellan claims council has become more reactive and less accountable. And he’d like to change that.
“One of the first things we have to do is review the delegation bylaw, with the strong possibility of rescinding it,” he says. “We also need to look at some of the polities that were repealed by the [Chief Administrative Officer] and look at reintroducing them.”
He firmly believes that council, not the CAO, should be making financial decisions for the city, especially given that there are some major expenses coming down the line, including infrastructure upgrades and new waste management requirements.
“I have an established reputation as a hard worker who always comes prepared to meetings,” McLellan says “I’m decisive and not afraid of being held accountable for the decisions I make.”
In addition to his time in council, McLellan’s community involvement includes terms on the Columbia View Lodge board, Library board and Golden City Manor board. He’s a past-president of Birchbank Golf Course and used to coach minor sports teams.