To Charlie Smith of the Georgia Straight, wards mean the dawn of a new political age in Vancouver.
Wards, wards, wards…if you are reading the Georgia Straight these days, Charlie Smith seems to have little interest in covering anything else these days.
In 1935, with reform-minded mayor Gerry McGeer in office, Vancouverites voted on the question, “Are you in favour of abolishing the ward system?” The result was decisive, with a 68 percent majority of voters choosing to move to an at-large system, which has been with the city ever since.
Vancouver has a long tradition as a city of NIMBYism (the not in my backyard syndrome), where developments, light rail proposals and homeless shelters have all at one time felt the wrath of a select group of Vancouver residents who truly believe in the superior pedigree of their respective neighbourhoods.
In fact, some Vancouver residents have elevated this type of attitude to the next level, coining a new term – NIABY (Not In Anyone’s Backyard) – and putting up an entire website devoted to showing opposition to “supportive housing initiatives and community treatments in mental health and addiction.”
Could packs of self-interested Vancouver residents cripple progress in the city with the introduction of wards?
So, in spite of my past support for the introduction of a wards electoral system in Vancouver, a conversation with a friend in town from Toronto yesterday has given me a different perspective, and filled my head with questions of whether this city in particular would benefit from such a change. Read the rest of this entry »
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Vancouver’s West End is 204 hectares and is home to 44,000 people (as at 2006) and has increased 5.8% in the previous 5 years and 66% moved since the last census. 61% speak English as their mother tongue. The majority are in the 20-39 year old age group. 59% are one person households, with 8,710 families and an average household inome of $38,000. There is a total of over 28,000 private households.
“We’re really asking people to be respectful of the diversity of our community. People live down here because of the diversity, they feel safe within diversity, and that’s a really important value for us.” – Brent Granby, West End Resident’s Association
