Kelowna mayoralty candidate Tom Dyas.

Image Credit: Submitted/Tom Dyas

Tom Dyas is running to be the next mayor of Kelowna.

He announced his candidacy tonight, June 29, at Rutland Centennial Hall.

“Residents need a mayor who will listen to them when they say crime has gotten worse, housing is unaffordable, roads are congested and a 29% increase in property taxes is too much,” Dyas said in a news release.

“As your mayor, my promise to you is to never say that good is good enough and to never say that any issue we’re facing as a community is not my problem. Being a leader means listening and stepping up when others won’t.”

Dyas was president of the Kelowna Chamber of Commerce for 2016 and 2017 and ran against incumbent Mayor Colin Basran in 2018.

Basran won that sometimes heated contest with 57% of the vote. Dyas was second in the field of four with 30% of the vote.

The two men had worked together as chamber president and mayor but, during the election campaign, Basran unfriended Dyas from his Facebook page and scoffed at the suggestion that Dyas had been a mentor to him.

At a candidates forum sponsored by the Kelowna Chamber of Commerce, Basran was the clear crowd favourite until, at the end, he got groans for accusing Dyas of “Trump-style politicking.”

READ MORE: Kelowna mayor’s Trump card may have backfired in Chamber debate

At that forum, Dyas announced plans to relocate City Hall and the Water Street fire hall and replace them with a performing arts centre and convention centre.

He suggested the homeless be moved to a ranch “where they will receive shelter, healing and hope” and Kelowna should have a municipal police force.

No details of this year’s platform were in the news release and his web page was not accessible before the announcement.

“Kelowna has seen tremendous growth over the last eight years and, while we’ve seen some positive changes, our leaders have failed to address many of the key priorities of our residents,” Dyas said in today’s news release, citing crime, unaffordable housing and aging infrastructure as examples.

The release describes him as a local entrepreneur and as former chamber president.

Dyas is owner of TD Benefits. It specializes in “employee group benefits and life insurance solutions for small to medium-sized businesses,” the company’s website says.

Basran has not yet announced his intentions for the Oct. 15 election.

The only incumbent councillors to declare their intentions so far are Mohini Singh, saying she will run, and Ryan Donn saying he won’t.

Former City of Kelowna engineer James Kay and “infrastructure procurement professional” Davis Kyle are the only other declared candidates for city council.

READ MORE: HE SAID, HE SAID: Breaking down the rhetoric from main rivals for Kelowna mayor

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