Alistair Taylor freely admits he has a reputation about town as a “wing-nut, agitator” or “loose cannon”, his words.
He attributes that to a time back in 2014 when he was kicked out of a city council meeting for causing a ruckus.
Now, he wants back in the room as a city councillor. He is one of three options that will appear on the ballot in the city’s upcoming byelection.
“I’m concerned Revelstoke is going to become a playground for rich people,” he said.
READ MORE: City pushes residents to vote by mail in upcoming byelection
Though he said there is a lot of really good work going on in Revelstoke, he would like to see more public engagement as there is the perception that things just happen, such as the temporary worker camp that was recently approved and installed in Johnson Heights.
He believes people should be working together, instead of against each other and wants to contribute to the conversation in a respectful way.
As a councillor, he would help facilitate good work, try to be as effective as possible and listen to people. He doesn’t think the City should bend over backwards for developers. And he intends to continue being honest, calling a spade a spade, when necessary.
Taylor is semi-retired, he works at an Alpine Club of Canada hut in the Bugaboos in the summer.
He moved to Revelstoke in 2003, while studying to become a pilot. He considers himself a member of the “fortunate generation”, as he moved before the cost of housing skyrocketed.
“I couldn’t afford to come to Revelstoke and buy a place now,” he said. “Prices are crazy.”
Originally from Scotland, Taylor got his Canadian citizenship in 2014.
As for the 2014 incident, Taylor said he was going through a hard time. He had recently lost his pilot license, and career, after what he called a snap diagnosis of bipolar disorder.
In 2013, he fell off his bike and hit his head, the one time he didn’t wear a helmet he ended up in the hospital needing brain surgery.
Around that time his long-term relationship also ended.
“I’m in a better place now than I was seven years ago,” he said.
The byelection is coming up in February, with mail-in-ballots accepted from everyone, advanced polling days on Feb. 3 and 10 and general voting day on Feb. 13.
The seat has been vacant for almost one year after Steven Cross resigned on Jan. 21, 2020.
READ MORE: Tim Palmer running for vacant council seat
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