An encampment along Wesley St. was shutdown following fire in December 2020, one of many challenges faced in Nanaimo over recent years. (File Photo/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

votenanaimo survey

Majority of Nanaimo Council candidates pushing for more City resources to combat addictions challenges

Oct 3, 2022 | 5:45 AM

NANAIMO — What are Nanaimo’s biggest challenges, and how should the next Mayor and Council tackle them?

In advance of the 2022 Municipal Election, NanaimoNewsNOW surveyed the 33 candidates vying for Mayor or a City Council position. The extensive survey tackled topics ranging from homelessness and social disorder, to economic development, tourism and reconciliation.

Candidates were asked to state their agreement or disagreement, on a 1-5 scale, to statements we posed on key election issues.

Of the 29 respondents, just over 75 per cent either agreed or strongly agreed the City should take a more proactive step in addressing the root causes of social disorder, namely drug treatment and mental health services.

Common themes among those who agreed included lobbying the province for more support and funding.

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Several candidates also advocated for further reform of the criminal justice system, especially when dealing with repeat or chronic offenders.

Of the seven candidates who did not agree, three were neutral, while four disagreed to some level.

Their stance primarily revolved around the fact addressing root causes of mental health, addictions and related social challenges are not the City’s to fix.

Multiple candidates called on the provincial and federal governments to step up further with supports and resources.

The recently adopted Downtown Nanaimo Safety Action Plan, particularly the hiring of 12 community safety officers, was mentioned by numerous candidates across the spectrum, however many said it was too early to tell their immediate effectiveness.

NanaimoNewsNOW also asked candidates whether they felt the issues surrounding mental health and addictions, were the biggest Nanaimo faced.

Twenty-seven of the 29 candidates agreed in some way.

Our complete and comprehensive VoteNanaimo survey is available by visiting our 2022 Municipal Election website.

Join the conversation. Submit your letter to NanaimoNewsNOW and be included on The Water Cooler, our letters to the editor feature.

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