Read this article on Pique News Magazine - Sep 2, 2026 

With four terms under his belt, Ralph Forsyth is asking voters to return him to the council table this fall.

“When I honestly thought about it and asked my friends and family what they thought, I decided,” Forsyth said. “It’s because I still love it, and I’m good at it.”

Forsyth is seeking re-election in Whistler’s Oct. 17 municipal election, pointing to his experience, willingness to dissent and work on Smart Tourism, housing and making council more transparent and accessible.

“I think it’s more important than ever to have someone with my leadership skills, someone that will ask the difficult questions,” he wrote in a campaign release.

“I’m not willing to just go with the flow; I still have a lot of enthusiasm for the job, and I’m optimistic about our future. That said, I’m not naive about potential pitfalls, and importantly, I have the experience to know the difference.”

Away from council, Forsyth is a ski instructor and small-business owner who has written for both Pique and the former Whistler Question. He spends much of his free time skiing and biking with his wife, Stephanie, and trying to keep pace with sons Jack and Liam—though he has given up trying to catch them on mountain bikes.

Housing and tourism that works for Whistler

On housing, Forsyth said Whistler may need to pivot from concentrating so much employee-housing growth in Cheakamus Crossing toward opportunities elsewhere, while pointing proudly to the hundreds of homes delivered there through the Whistler Development Corporation.

“I think the people in Cheakamus are feeling like, ‘Wow, man, we’re a bit overwhelmed at the moment,’” he said. “So, let’s take a breath, but let’s not stop working towards housing.”

A 2025 assessment identified “significant” or “substantial” development potential across the resort municipality’s neighbourhoods.

“When we saw those reports about the priority sites, council was clearly most excited about sites that are north of the Village,” Forsyth said. “We haven’t cracked the nut of housing. Vacancy rates aren’t going up, right? So we need to continue to look [for new sites].”

Forsyth is also eager to continue chairing Whistler’s Smart Tourism Committee, focused on ensuring tourism delivers greater benefits for residents.

“It’s more about stakeholders than shareholders, and that the benefits of tourism accrue to the people who work in tourism,” he said. “What are we doing about congestion? What are we doing about traffic? How can we make that not just a better resident experience, but improve the guest experience too?”

He pointed to online accommodation-provider tax revenues directed toward affordable housing, as well as ideas like a valley-bottom gondola as examples of that approach.

Taxes, towers and another four years

Forsyth said managing municipal costs will remain a concern, while arguing Whistler’s growing permanent population is putting greater pressure on services.

“You go to Meadow Park, and we used to go there and pick up whatever weight you wanted, work on whatever machine you wanted, and walk out,” he said. “Now it’s packed—but it’s not packed with tourists. It’s packed with us.”

Forsyth also embraces his reputation as a dissenting vote.

Asked for an issue he would draw a line on next term, he pointed to the proposed 10- and 12-storey buildings in Beedie Living’s Northlands redevelopment. Forsyth put forward an ultimately defeated motion seeking to cap the development at eight storeys.

“When I showed my kids that—the kids who are going to inherit the views of this town—they’re like, ‘No way, man,’” he said. “That was one where people came up to me at Nesters and said, ‘Yeah, man, no big tower there.’”

Asked how voters should measure another Forsyth term, he returned to experience.

“I hope people feel like they’re getting good value from my representation,” he said. “I think that even people who either don’t like me personally or don’t like my policies—or both—won’t argue that I don’t do the job and that I’m not good at the job.”

And he wants residents to call him.

“My cell phone’s on my website. It’s on the internet. Call me. I love to chat,” he said. “I’ll meet you anywhere, anytime—pre- and post-election. Not just during election time.”

Whistler voters head to the polls Oct. 17, with prospective candidates required to submit their nomination papers between Sept. 1 and 11. Learn more here.