He finished a distant second after Colin Basran in 2018, but TD Benefits owner and former president of the Kelowna Chamber of Commerce believes he has a better chance this time around. One thing he learned from his last kick in the box was that he needed a longer catwalk. “The last campaign I took part in, I think I had ten weeks from the time the campaign started until the moment we went to the polls. “I had to be more organized. I needed to be able to communicate and listen to more people in the community. “The last four years have given me this opportunity,” Dyas explained. Speaking to about 50 supporters at Rutland Memorial Hall Wednesday night, Dyas spoke about growth, crime, road congestion, aging facilities, taxes and homelessness. He did not immediately attack Basra, but said that being the mayor of Kelowna and Kelowna also meant defending the whole of Kelowna. “With an unprecedented 29 percent increase in real estate tax over the last eight years, our residents deserve to see these issues addressed, but that is not the case,” Dyas said. “We’ve seen a lot of the right discussions, but not a lot of the right actions.” Dyas would not give a definitive answer as to whether a second bridge crossing on Lake Okanagan should be built. He was also unprepared to state his position on the province’s prospect of introducing legislation that would force municipalities to remove roadblocks to new housing developments. Zeus is the first candidate for mayor outside the gate. Colin Basran has not said whether he intends to run for re-election.
