I know I can make a difference

Profile of mayoral candidate Jim Dixon
By Dan Hilborn
Published Nov. 10, 2002


Jim Dixon wants the voters of Burnaby to know that he is not a one-issue candidate.

Sure, the man carrying the Burnaby Voters Non-Partisan Association mayoralty nod into the Nov. 16 civic election has spent a lot of time talking about Burnaby Lake since his surprise nomination almost two months ago.

But there's a lot more to the 26-year veteran captain with the Burnaby Fire Department than just preserving the lake for fish, fowl and wildlife.

Dixon, a former NDP member who quit that party about five years ago, says the city's current left-leaning BCA-majority city council is using the lake issue to avoid talking about more pressing concerns, such as policing, transportation, social issues and the redevelopment of the Edmonds neighbourhood.

"I think the whole lake issue is playing out really well for Derek Corrigan and the BCA," Dixon said last week. "As long as people keep talking about the lake, he doesn't have to talk about crime or traffic."

"My party has done a lot of surveys, and we haven't found anybody who wants an international rowing facility. People know that you can't keep incurring these huge capital expenses as we've been doing in Burnaby."

Dixon said going slower on the lake - phasing in a smaller dredge program over several years - will free up the city's finances for more pressing matters, such as turning the Edmonds neighbourhood into the next urban town centre of Burnaby.

"Burnaby already has three town centres that are doing well - Metrotown, Brentwood and Lougheed - and I believe Edmonds should be next. The city is already building a new fire hall in the area, and I think a new Edmonds community centre should be built. A new community centre would signal to the people that the city cares about their neighbourhood."

This week, the BVNPA candidates gathered near Edmonds SkyTrain Station to highlight what they believe is one of the most pressing safety concerns in the city - the dark and secluded walking trails around the transit depot.

"We definitely need more lighting on some of these paths," Dixon said. "The girls in the area call it the Valley of Death."

Poverty is another reason why Dixon would rather spend money on the east side of Burnaby than in dredging the lake. "If transients and poor people are in east Burnaby, then that's where we should be putting our resources," he said.

And to pay for increased spending on social issues, Dixon and the BVNPA would consider using the city's gaming revenues - money paid to city hall out of the profits of Burnaby's Gateway Casino. City gaming revenues are currently targeted at heritage and environmental issues.

"Burnaby has a lot of social issues affecting local seniors and the poor. And we could easily say that it's not a city responsibility. But there is also something that we can do. I believe gaming has social problems tied to it, and I think it would be a fair assumption to use that money on social issues. I think it would be reasonable to add another level to that gaming money."

While Dixon recognizes that the provincial government has already downloaded more than $2 million in costs to city hall, he disagrees with the current BCA council's position on fighting the provincial government.

"Derek Corrigan is on record as calling the four MLAs 'spineless' and (school trustee) Mondee Redman is saying she'll fight them 'tooth and nail.' But if you personally attack them (the Liberals), why would they want to turn around and work with you?

"Instead, the city should stick to the facts. Let people know the effects of the downloading and the new costs incurred, and then move on. You have to work around it.

"The reality is, the federal and provincial Liberals are going to be around for a long while. I don't think you'll get what you want from them by throwing down the gauntlet. If you call somebody spineless, why would they want to do business with you?"

Another priority for the BVNPA is opening the city's four community police offices on weekends and evenings.

"The neighbourhood police offices work well, but we need to open them up more often," he said. "Monday to Friday just doesn't work in terms of being as accessible as they need to be."

Dixon supports giving more resources to the Citizen's Crime Watch Patrol and stronger community policing programs.

"We need more community education," he said. "A lot of people with ethnic backgrounds just aren't aware of the dangers in our city. For instance, take an issue like jogging at night - where is a good place to do that?"

While Dixon wants more police officers in Burnaby, he is noncommittal on when those people will be hired.

"Yeah, eventually we'll need more officers, and the major crimes part of our department needs more resources, that's obvious. But I'm not prepared to say that tomorrow we need another five or 10," he said. "We can't afford a police officer at every corner, but if we address some of the social issues, then maybe we won't need more officers."

A lifelong city employee, Dixon is just five months away from mandatory retirement in the fire department. He said the only new staff position he would create at city hall is a youth employment office - a person dedicated to helping young people from Burnaby find good jobs.

Dixon said city hall will also be hard pressed to peg any tax increases to inflationary levels. "I think it'll be a huge challenge to maintain the high quality of service that Burnaby currently has," he said. "the challenge will be to keep taxes at inflationary levels and maintain our services. But, if we follow the examples set by Vic Stusiak and Bill Lewarne we'll be served well, and that's what people are asking for

"Of all the community meetings I"ve been to, there hasn't been one where people didn't ask city hall to do more."

Dixon was raised and went to school in Burnaby and worked his entire adult life in the city, but he lives in south Surrey with his wife Marilyn, where they raised two children.

"I could have put on a facade and moved here just for the election, but I figure once you start lying, you're a liar," said Dixon, who has been making the commute for almost three decades. "My wife has an aging mother out in Surrey, and she want to be close to her."

"My heart's in Burnaby and I was raised in Burnaby, and my God, I believe I am from Burnaby. And I know I can make a difference."

Dixon attended Glenwood, MacPherson and Burnaby South schools, and has been the recipient of the Canada 125 medal, a Burnaby Centennial certificate of appreciation, and exemplary service medal from the provincial fire office for his work in the city.