Lord makes pitch for city seat

By Staff Writer - Vernon Morning Star Published: September 23, 2011 1:00 AM 
A former City of Vernon employee is looking for a place at the council table. Catherine Lord has announced that she will run for councillor during the Nov. 19 civic election.  “I really look forward to the upcoming civic election campaign in Vernon, and I appreciate the support of those citizens who have encouraged my candidacy for public office” she said.  A certified general accountant, Lord is a former deputy finance director at Vernon city hall and she was also director of finance at the District of Coldstream. She is currently general manager of the city-owned O’Keefe Ranch. Lord says she is concerned about Vernon’s financial situation.  “We are in a period of uncertain economic times, both provincially and globally, and there is a true need to exercise fiscal restraint and tighten our belts. We need to spend efficiently,” she said. Other issues of concern are transportation planning and Vernon’s relationship with other jurisdictions.  “A regional approach to certain services, such as water and parks, is more efficient and therefore more desirable, but individual jurisdictions’ needs have to be taken into account in any partnership,” she said. “The key to any successful relationship is co-operation and negotiation.”  Lord has been a resident of Vernon for 35 years and she was involved in the capital campaigns for Transition House and the North Okanagan Neurological Association. She is past-president of the United Way and the Ribbons of Green Trail Society, and was a board member on the Boys and Girls Club. She is currently the treasurer of the Community Foundation of the North Okanagan.