North Van school trustee byelection set for May 29

A byelection for a new North Vancouver school trustee has been set for  Saturday, May 29.

Voters in the District of North Vancouver will choose a trustee to replace former trustee and vice-chair Devon Bruce, who resigned last month after two and a half years on the board.

Bruce, a first-term trustee elected under the Building Bridges banner in 2018, was acclaimed as vice-chair of the board in December. Bruce did not return calls from the North Shore News about why he resigned.

Board chair George Tsiakos said earlier Bruce had cited increased workload at his North Shore Connexions Society job as the reason he stepped down.

Schools superintendent Mark Pearmain told the board voting for a new trustee will take place at eight school sites on May 29. Advance polls will also be open on May 19 and 24.

The byelection will likely cost about $80,000, said Pearmain, including labour costs, advertising, printing and COVID safety costs. That amount will be paid out of the school district’s operating budget.

The most recent previous school byelection – held 12 years ago – cost about $50,000, he said.

On Tuesday night, trustee Kulvir Mann was acclaimed as the new vice-chair of the school board.