Bernadette Keenan: “The votes are adding up”

Bernadette Keenan, the recent federal and municipal candidate for Surrey, has announced her intention to seek election in the riding of Surrey-Whalley in the upcoming British Columbia provincial general election (May 12, 2009).

She states on her website: “Thanks to everyone who supported me for the federal, and municipal campaigns. The votes are adding up and sending a message that people are opposed to Gateway and the South Fraser Freeway. I am running in the provincial election this spring, so join me as I take this message on the campaign trail for the legislature, to overturn the destructive Gateway freeway plans, first hatched there by the Liberal government.”

Keenan maintained a busy pace in the recent municipal campaign, speaking out against the Gateway freeway expansion plans at the numerous all candidates meetings. Through the course of the campaign, several other candidates – some who had previously been neutral on the issue – joined her in denouncing Gateway and calling for the immediate expansion of public transit service in its place. She received formal endorsements from Green Party mayoral candidate Murray Weisenberger and the Rail for the Valley campaign, among others.

Roads through Bogs: a Bad Idea™

There seems to be no shortage of Gateway-like projects grinding to a halt all over the free world these days. One in particular caught our attention, and led us to conclude: “this crap wouldn’t fly in Poland.”

The Via Baltica freeway expansion in Poland’s Rospuda Valley was recently declared illegal over environmental concerns. Like the Rospuda, our own Burns Bog is listed as a threatened peatland due to planned freeway construction.

The Europeans are way ahead of us here. Let us resolve to elect politicians with the backbone to uphold something like the Burns Bog Conservation Covenant – or for that matter, enact proper endangered species legislation – and stop this freeway from destroying the last of our precious wild spaces.

Next meeting in Bridgeview

The next meeting of the Bridgeview Community Action Group is Thursday, November 20 at 7 PM at Bridgeview Hall (MAP).

The group has grown and now includes concerned citizens from all corners of Surrey as well as Bridgeview – come meet some of the feisty folks who’ve been raising a little hell about the ghastly Gateway in their communities! We expect a contingent of like-minded friends from north of the Fraser and welcome anyone else who is interested to come out and join the fun.