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Election 2014: New candidate joins Hope's mayoral race

District of Hope: Cindy Young is the third person to announce their intentions to run in November's municipal election

The mayoral contest in Hope is heating up with another declared candidate this week.

Local resident Cindy Young plans to run in November’s municipal election, driven by a desire to see the community prosper.

“Hope is dying mainly because the kids have no jobs and the seniors are taxed out of their living accommodations because they can’t afford to live there,” she said.

“We need a change. If you want a town to grow, you can’t close things off to businesses. You have to be able to grow with it and if you don’t grow with it, the town will die.”

Young, who is a personal trainer and physiotherapist assistant in Chilliwack, is focusing her campaign around attracting new business and better care for seniors.

She said people are leaving Hope due to a lack of jobs and going out-of-town to buy goods because “there’s no stores in Hope that sell what they want, or there is and it’s very limited.”

“The whole idea is to keep money in Hope,” Young added.

“That’s one reason our taxes are a little bit on the high side because the money is not being brought back into the community, it’s going to other communities.”

As for seniors, she feels more initiatives are needed to look after their needs, expectations and goals.

While programs like Care Transit and Better at Home help with this, Young said more can be done. One example she suggested was a tax break to assist seniors who are financially struggling.

Young will be vying for the mayor’s seat this November  against Coun. Peter Robb and Fraser Valley Regional District area director Lloyd Forman, who announced their candidacy last month.

Current mayor Susan Johnston has not yet decided whether she’ll seek re-election.