Longtime Port Alberni city councillor Ike Patterson has died.
Patterson passed away suddenly Sunday night (May 1), Mayor Ken McRae said.
"Ike and I were good friends. We were close," McRae said. "He and I hit it off really good. He was a super councillor."
Patterson lived in Port Alberni for 44 years and raised a family here with his late wife, Linda, a popular newspaper publisher who died last September.
Ike Patterson moved here from Squamish to take an on-air job with CJAV, now 93.3 The PEAK FM. He was the author of "This Was Then", an historical newspaper column that runs in the Pennyworth newspaper.
A man who was passionate about his community, Patterson was serving his third term on city council. His portfolios included heritage, culture and education. He was one of council's liaisons with School District 70 and North Island College
"In camera, that's where he was really strong," McRae said. "He's going to be hard to replace."
Patterson leaves behind three children and eight grand-children.