A week after charting on the hot list, Mayor Wayne Lippert slips to the cold list. Lippert was needlessly harsh with Coun. Barry Beardsell over a simple misunderstanding and his comments in a Vernon Daily Courier interview about homelessness were similarly snippy. The mayor questioned what the media are doing to solve the homeless problem. Local media outlets don’t have the funds nor the resources that city hall does to deal with homelessness. Nor do we have the same mandate to care for the poor. Of course the media don’t necessarily publicize every one of their own good deeds.
Coun. Pat Cochrane makes yet another appearance on the hot list this week for speaking up for the city’s pines. Cochrane encouraged his fellow councillors to act quickly to slow the spread of the pine beetle on private property. This is a time sensitive issue and council needs to implement as many worthy programs as possible or give up on prevention.
Continuing his hot streak is Coun. Barry Beardsell who was as active as ever at Monday’s meeting admonishing his fellow councillors for failing to ask questions when they don’t understand something. Beardsell is consistently the most inquisitive councillor and he had a lot of pointed questions about a variance to allow a residential home to be developed in a tourist commercial area. He rightly said that guidelines need to be drafted to deal with future proposals.
Coun. Patrick Nicol ends his brief cold spell with a return to the hot list this week. Nicol was outspoken on the issue of child day cares and the need to speed up the zoning process. Access to day care is a major issue and when groups apply to build one, they need to be moved ahead as soon as possible, as Nicol pointed out. Hopefully, council continues to raise the issue of day care, particularly in their meetings with representatives from the other two levels of government.
Landing on the cold list are council’s two coyest members. Coun. Jack Gilroy and Coun. Buffy Baumbrough rarely speak at council, which is unfortunate. They’ve both proven they do have valuable opinions.
On the hot list this week is Coun. Juliette Cunningham who answered on council’s behalf when they were accused of ignoring the homeless. Cunningham has always made the effort to speak up for the less fortunate in council meetings and has been involved in several extra projects, including the temporary women’s shelter, in her spare time.Council has been working to try and alleviate the homeless and affordable housing issues, but when so many are still on the streets and struggling to find low cost housing – perhaps even more effort is required. 
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