SURREY - Former Surrey Liberal MLA Brenda Locke plans to run for a Surrey council seat in the November civic election.
She will run as an independent."There's a few things I want to see happening," she told the Now. "We've become very much a community of stovepipes."Locke said she wants to see a more cohesive vision of Surrey as a whole, rather than a handful of community hubs (Whalley, Newton, Fleetwood and Guildford...)."We've all become little silos," Locke said. "I'm still challenged to find where is Surrey in all of this. We need to reach out a little better than what we're doing."She said she's also concerned about the gentrification of Whalley, and wants to see more social issues addressed in Whalley and Newton in particular.The Guildford resident currently serves as the executive director of the B.C. Massage Therapist Association. She said she also, if elected, would fight for more ice arenas and opportunities for Surrey youth to participate in hockey, curling and other ice sports.Locke was Liberal MLA for Surrey-Green Timbers from 2001 to 2005. Among other duties, she served as Minister of State for Mental Health and Addiction Services.Locke defeated NDP MLA Sue Hammell for the seat in 2001, but Hammell then returned the favour in 2005.After that, Locke twice ran for federal office as a Liberal, in Fleetwood-Port Kells, in 2006 and 2008 but was defeated by Tory MP Nina Grewal.