Surrey File: Paul Hillsdon for City Council

Photo Credit: Roland Tanglao

The people I have featured in my What The Surrey or Surrey File series are not your stereotypical products of Surrey that other Metro Vancouverites or Canadians tend to imagine.

I’m extremely proud to have been born and raised in Surrey and the people of the city are hard-working, dedicated, determined, unbelievably driven and intelligent individuals. A prime example is Paul Hillsdon, a high school student who will be running for City Council in 2008.

Over the past year or so, as my projects have come and gone I’ve become frustrated. I developed policies and plans to fix many of the problems I encountered in daily life. I created the South of Fraser Transit 2011 proposal because transit is lackluster out here. I created the Surrey Cycling Initiative because biking anywhere wasn’t a safe or viable transportation alternative in my city. I created the Transit Metropolis Vancouver vision because I wanted to be able to move around the region quickly, comfortably, and cheaply. [Paul Hillsdon]

I first discovered Paul after he found me, leaving a comment on a blog post of mine about transit in September 2007. I’ve been following his projects since including my current favourite, Civic Surrey. We then met in December at TransitCamp Vancouver [PaulHillsdon][Miss604].

Paul is also the brains behind numerous transit and sustainability initiatives and proposals in the region and by running in the municipal elections, I think we’re all hoping his well-researched ideas come to fruition. His platform revolves around four pillars: Sustainable Development, Green Spaces, Transportation Options, and Vibrant Communities.

According to the Surrey Now, “If successful is his bid, it’s believed Hillsdon would be the youngest member to ever hold a seat on council.”

You can find all of this information and more on his campaign site, PaulIn08.com which contains a blog on which you can ask him questions. It’s times like these I still wish I lived in Surrey, but I’m pretty sure I could get my family members to rally for Team Hillsdon (at least they better!)

If you would like to support Paul’s effort consider clicking on that donate tab on his site, writing about his efforts on your blog (or newspaper… or talk about him on your radio station) and look for his name on the Surrey City Council ballot this fall.