Photo: Juliana Buitenhuis

Castanet News is getting to know the candidates running in the upcoming Penticton council by-election.

Watch for a new candidate Q&A each morning leading up to the first day of advance voting on March 26.

Interviews have been edited for clarity and brevity.

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Juliana Buitenhuis: Penticton council candidate

Juliana Buitenhuis moved to Penticton from North Vancouver seven years ago to work at Okanagan College, and has since set up her life and family here.

Castanet: Why are you running to be a city councillor?

Juliana Buitenhuis: I always say I'm not running because I'm angry. I'm running because I'm in love. I love the city, I love Penticton, I love my neighbours, and I love my family, and I want us all to thrive. I think we're stronger together. In the past, I worked as a community planner for the City of North Vancouver, so I understand the role of municipalities and how an engaged, strategic council can really create a more vibrant city.

C: What is the most pressing local issue that you as a Penticton councillor would want to address, keeping in mind that City Hall only has so much power?

JB: I think an issue that affects probably most people is affordability. Affordability is influenced by a lot of factors, like the high cost of housing, an economy that is not year-round, or lack of stable employment.

As councillors, we can support local business, we can support affordability both through influencing other levels of government so that they can provide grants and funding for more affordable housing solutions, but also just fast tracking-developments, because the more housing stock there is, the more affordable housing becomes. Then we can also identify efficiencies and streamline processes.

C: If elected, you would be joining council mid-term. What is one example of a time you have agreed with the current council, and one when you disagreed?

JB: I thought that the support of the winter shelter was a huge step for the city, and it really shows that they're kind of picking up and stepping in where the both the provincial and federal government were not sort of stepping in where they should have been.

This is something that was rectified, but one thing I've disagreed with is that council had initially cancelled the grant for the Penticton Art Gallery. They highly reduced the amount of what they were going to allot them, and they did do a one time extension after public feedback.

So I disagreed with not continuing to financially support the Penticton Art Gallery because it's a super important pillar in our community. It draws tourism, and it's important to keep arts and culture alive and in our city.

C: This is a by-election, so roughly a year and a half term is guaranteed before the scheduled fall 2026 election. Is your plan, if elected, to stick around and run again for a full term?

JB: Yes. I have a child with a disability at home, and I just want to make sure that it best fits my family. But I love the city, and I make time for things that are important for me and and I think this is really important.

C: Canada is dealing with a rollercoaster regarding American trade policies. On a local level what, if anything, is Penticton council's role in providing support for local businesses during these uncertain times?

JB: I think that maybe one silver lining of these tariffs is that, first of all, I think domestic travel is going to increase. I think that people want to spend local and buy local. So I think enhancing the work of Visit Penticton and Meet in Penticton, which is bringing conferences to town, I think that's really important.

Also for a municipality of this size, normally there would be someone specifically dedicated to economic development, so an economic development officer, so ensuring that focusing on businesses is someone's full time strategy and role is to support businesses in this community.

C: This election is to fill one available seat on council, previously held by now-MLA Amelia Boultbee, but a second seat sits empty at meetings.

Coun. James Miller has been on mandatory leave from his council duties since August while facing historical criminal charges. He retains his council seat in name and collects his city salary, as per the Local Government Act.

In your opinion should Coun. Miller resign while he deals with his personal situation?

JB: I know what I would do in that situation. I would definitely step down if I were getting paid for a job that I was not able to fulfill. But of course, there's laws in place where you're innocent until proven guilty. So I understand that the municipality is in a challenging space, because there's upcoming legal proceedings,

C: So as you mentioned there, since he's not able to do the job, in your opinion, it's a yes, he should step down?

JB: Yes, 100 per cent. I don't think people should be getting paid for jobs they're not doing.

C: Pie-in-the-sky question: If the city had $1 million of free money to spend on anything, how would you want to see it spent?

JB: I think a huge gap in the city is we don't have a shelter for youth. There are only shelters for adults, so supportive housing for youth, I think is a massive gap. That being said, that's not enough money to open up a youth housing shelter and of course, you need support from other levels of government, but I think that's really important.

Advance voting days are March 26 and 27. General voting day is April 5.