Jason Cox said the time has come for new leadership and a new vision for the City of Penticton.

The former banker and current business owner of The People’s Soda Company said he was skeptical when he accepted a job and moved to Penticton 15 years ago, believing at the time he would be moving back quickly to Kelowna.

However, he fell in love with the community and its residents and couldn’t think of any place where he would rather live, said Cox.

Photo Credit: NowMediaPenticton business owner Jason Cox, shown earlier this week at a debate between himself and incumbent Mayor Andrew Jakubeit and challenger John Vassilaki, says the time has come for a new vision and new leadership he would provide if elected mayor on Oct. 20.

He has committed himself to getting heavily involved in making things better as a three-time president of the Penticton & Wine Country Chamber of Commerce and with numerous community non-profit organizations and agencies.

Despite his lack of political experience, Cox said he believes he possesses the skills, education and vision to become Penticton’s next mayor.

After spending 12 years in Kelowna after graduating with a degree in political science, economics and philosophy from the University of British Columbia, Cox moved to Penticton in 2003 to begin a career as a business banker.

When he first started his position with Valley First 15 years ago, he believed he would take the first offer to transfer back to Kelowna, but quickly changed his mind after spending some time in Penticton, he said.

“I instantly fell in love with this community,” he said. “The beaches, parks and lakes, the world-class wineries, breweries, innovative restaurants, the arts and culture scene, the festivals and events, the unique one-of-a-kind small businesses, the unique and surprisingly innovative larger employers that started here as small businesses.

“The safety and security I felt here in raising my four daughters here. All of this is what captured my heart and led me here and to turn down three transfers back to Kelowna.”

Photo Credit: NowMediaJason Cox participated in a candidates trade show earlier this week at the Lakeside Resort & Convention Centre. Despite his lack of experience in politics, Cox said his success in business and strong community involvement with various agencies and organizations has prepared him to become mayor of Penticton.When he decided to leave the banking business, he never thought once about leaving Penticton and is the proud owner of The People’s Soda Company over the past several years.

He decided to get heavily involved in the community and joined the local chamber of commerce and eventually became president not long after joining – a position he’s held on two other occasions over the past 13 years, said Cox.

He’s also been involved in a long list of community organizations and societies since deciding to make Penticton his permanent home, he said.

“These roles have deepened my understanding of both the needs of our business community and the needs of our most vulnerable,” he said. “I’ve supported both communities for years, not months leading up to an election and I’ve done it for the good of the community.”

Photo Credit: NowMedia

Cox said his vast business and community experience has convinced him “I can confidently say that I can lead in the best interests of all Penticton.”

There’s an “urgent need for new leadership” in Penticton, he said.

The City is blessed with an abundance of natural beauty, beautiful parks, two lakes, a wonderful waterfront and quality transportation links, he said.

“It’s disheartening to hear our City was ranked as the second-least liveable City in B.C.,” he said. “It doesn’t make sense.”

The biggest concerns moving forward are the City’s increasing crime rate, lack of affordable housing and gaps in social infrastructure, he said.

Photo Credit: Contributed

“These are real problems impacting us all and require our immediate action,” he said. “Unfortunately, mayor and council have not had that effective leader and because of that, we’re seeing the worsening of our quality of life.

“These key indicators have been a growing concern since before the last election.”

The issues of crime, housing and addiction are not isolated here in Penticton, “but they need to be dealt with locally and right now,” said Cox.

“Penticton lacks the leadership, is passive, not proactive. As a result, frustrations have been bubbling over and mounting and we’ve missed opportunities to get to the table and improve things over the last several councils. We cannot afford four more years of anything we’ve had before. We can do better and I can assure you we have  the opportunity in front of us now to have a council that is engaged and drawing the community together, not dividing it.”

Cox brought up the Skaha Lake Park water slide controversy once again, saying it resulted in “bitter division in the community."

The City had to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on lawyers from outside Penticton to battle local residents who decided to take legal action as a result of the water slide controversy, he said.

Photo Credit: NowMediaJason Cox formally announced in late August that he would be running to become mayor of Penticton in the Oct. 20 general election.

“This is a leadership that has resulted in these dismal quality of life rankings and I know we can do better,” he said.

Penticton must evolve into a City that is environmentally, socially and economically sustainable, he said.

“Not a City where we give blanket economic incentives that cost us more money than we’ll ever take back in taxes,” he said.

A major goal, if elected, would be to make Penticton the best city of its size in Canada to start a new business, said Cox.

“That means the City has to see itself as a problem solver that fundamentally asks how can we help you succeed, not a regulator that asks what are you trying to get away with,” he said.

Photo Credit: NowMedia

Cox insists City council has to be “fixed.”

“The good news is we know how to do this,” he said. “Governments around the world have reformed their systems to deliver data-driven services at lower costs. It means better budgeting, better auditing and a council that knows how to ask the right questions to set the strategic plan for the community and puts the City back on the right path to being a world-level City.

“That’s what I offer you … a chance to work together to help achieve a better Penticton that we all want.”

PentictonNow will publish a feature on incumbent Mayor Andrew Jakubeit and his efforts to be re-elected later today (Friday).