Building on Our Roots: Steve’s Vision for Sooke’s Next Chapter

My family moved to Sooke in the 1970s for many of the same reasons people still choose this community today. My parents saw a place where they could build a business, raise a family, enjoy the outdoors, and create a good life in a safe, welcoming, and affordable community. Fifty years later, those values still matter. But Sooke has changed. We grew from a resource-based community built around logging and fishing into one increasingly shaped by services, tourism, and people commuting elsewhere for work.

Sooke may only be 26 years old as a municipality, but much of our infrastructure is far older. We inherited aging roads, drainage systems, and other infrastructure without the financial reserves older municipalities have had generations to build. We need to think beyond the next Council term.

I want Sooke to remain a place where families can afford to live, kids can play safely, people can build businesses and careers, and the natural environment remains part of everyday life. I want a walkable town centre and neighbourhoods with shops, services, recreation, and gathering places closer to home. And while I’m proud of my family’s history here, Sooke doesn’t belong more to those of us who have been here for 50 years than to someone who moved here five years ago – or last month. They chose Sooke too. Their voices matter.

Growth also means we need clearer rules than we had in the past. Not everyone likes that. But growth isn’t just about building houses. It’s about building complete neighbourhoods – roads, sidewalks, parks, trails and services – and making sure development contributes its fair share. We don’t want to simply recreate the Sooke of 50 years ago. We can take what was good about it and build on it for the people who live here today and those who come next.

That’s why I’m running with Sooke Together.

— Steve