FORMER mayor of Surrey, Doug McCallum, on Thursday criticized Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke’s performance, asserting that she has achieved little for the residents of the city and accused her of taking credit for initiatives that were set in motion by the Safe Surrey Coalition, such as the 80 Avenue road improvements, the widening of 32 Avenue and Cloverdale Arena ice rinks.

“During our term, significant projects like the 80 Avenue and 32 Avenue improvements, and the Cloverdale Arena ice rinks were initiated,” McCallum said. “It’s disheartening to see Mayor Locke claim these achievements as her own, when in fact she voted against them as a councillor!”

He highlighted her “major achievements” in her first year as mayor as a 400% tax increase from 2.5% to 12.5%, wastage of $100M — equivalent to $266,000 taxpayer dollars per day — opposing the Surrey police transition, cancellation of Preliminary Layout Approvals (PLAs) for approved housing projects, and the denying of more than 2,000 housing unit applications during a housing crisis.

“The Safe Surrey Coalition’s administration marked a period of significant progress, now being undone,” McCallum added. “Surrey’s residents deserve leadership that builds upon, not undermines, our past achievements.”

He further pointed out the inaction regarding the Newton Recreation Centre, a project initiated under his leadership with a $100M site acquisition. “It has been 14 months with no progress on this vital community centre. Mayor Locke and her council are blatantly ignoring Newton’s needs, playing politics at the expense of our community,” he noted.

McCallum rated Locke’s first year in office as an F-, signaling a significant departure from the city’s previously progressive direction.