There have been many verbal and written shots fired but the daylight time controversy is about to die without a chance for the public to vote on the issue.
Coun. Judy Gadicke, the main proponent in taking the issue to referendum, made a motion at the March 25 council meeting to remove it from the Town of Creston action plan.
Gadicke conceded defeat on her proposal after being informed by Mayor Ron Toyota that there was no chance that local Regional District of Central Kootenay directors would support going to referendum.
“This is about democracy,” she said before the motion passed.
“For us (town council) this was never about going out and campaigning one way or another,” Toyota said. “It was about giving the people of the Creston Valley and East Shore a chance to go into a voting booth and have their say.”
Gadicke brought out the issue in two local government election campaigns, and topped the polls among candidates for town council in each.
When directed to take the issue to the local services committee, Toyota met with opposition from Area A director Garry Jackman and Area B director John Kettle, neither of whom support a move to daylight time. Kettle organized an online survey of his constituents, with the majority of respondents opposing a change. Area C director Larry Binks supported going to referendum, but said he did not believe there was support for daylight time in his area.
The issue became a cause for public debate before the 2008 local election when a local business owner wrote to the Town of Creston requesting that the area adopt mountain daylight time, which would align Creston with areas to the east, including Cranbrook, year-round. The business adopted its own daylight time hours, and has since ceased operation.