Coming into this municipal election with a financial background, having worked as an auditor, and having lived in several different places, including 10 years in Australia, Travis Peterson hopes to bring "fresh ideas and a fresh perspective" to Duncan city council. "I feel that in terms of council, there needs to be better consultation and accountability," he said. "They're doing a good job, however we haven't seen anything new, any new ideas."
Peterson considers himself a team player and is open to working with representatives from a variety of backgrounds.
"I like to hear all the other perspectives on an issue," he said. Among Peterson's concerns are that city council often deals with issues that aren't immediate to Duncan.
"A lot of issues occupy council's time that seem to be fairly largescale issues that don't have that much impact on the community," he said. "It's the job of city hall to put residents first rather than activist policies."
He also wants to look into a use for the city's financial surplus.
"The city is definitely in a healthy position. They could be providing better services."
With regard to amalgamation with North Cowichan, Peterson is in favour of studying the possibility.
"I'm not saying I'm in favour of amalgamation, but we owe it to ourselves to look into it," he said.