August 9, 2010 - 11:27 am |
Posted by Jonathan Ross
Chretien is once again fighting back after successful brain surgery last week.
Readers of this website will know that I have been unafraid to take on Charlie Smith of the Georgia Straight when I felt it to be appropriate, but at the same time give praise when deserved.
But Smith’s blog post over the weekend takes the cake as one of the most classless pieces of “journalism” I have been exposed to in a very long time.
Why am I so harsh, you may ask? Well, speculating about the political benefit of someone’s death, never mind the fact that the person in question is a former Prime Minister, truly crosses a line as far as I am concerned.
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May 18, 2010 - 12:19 pm |
Posted by Jonathan Ross
There was a spirit of cooperation and good will in the room at yesterday's signing. Photo Credit: The Vancouver Observer
Yesterday’s Memorandum of Understanding between the City of Vancouver and the Squamish Nation aims to, according to Stephen Hui of the Georgia Straight:
“establish a cooperative government-to-government relationship for the purpose of sharing information, improving communications, addressing specific concerns, setting a solid foundation for future planning and raising awareness and understanding of Squamish Nation title, rights and responsibilities and the rights of the City under the Vancouver Charter”.
Both parties agreed to collaboration – let me repeat that word – collaboration – on governance, intergovernmental relations, economic development, cultural and heritage protection, tourism, environmental protection, land use planning and management, zoning processes, capacity building, shared/reciprocal service delivery, transportation initiatives, and sustainable healthy communities.
These areas of mutual interest go far beyond symbolism, as establishing a cooperative “government-to-government” relationship is a foundation upon which to grow together, which is particularly important for a nation that has 60 per cent of its population under the age of 25.
Contrast this with the approach that was taken by former NPA Park Board commissioner Marty Zlotnik towards the Musqueam band and supported by former Mayor Sam Sullivan, and you will see just one of the differences in priorities at City Hall between then and now.
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March 22, 2010 - 10:33 am |
Posted by Jonathan Ross
The City of Vancouver has the potential to do so much more with its property assets.
I am no expert on the Property Endowment Fund (PEF), which ambiguously is approximately $2.5 billion of indeterminate assets. I know that it is a significant part of Vancouver’s financial profile, and that it is essential to our credit rating. Outside of that, I am very unclear as to its purpose. So, I started to do some basic reading to get up to speed.
Created by TEAM in the in the 1970s, the PEF took those properties and leases owned by the city which were not in the near term intended to be used for municipal purposes (roads, parks or non-market housing sites) and consolidated them. It was operated through the real-estate division on a market basis (meaning they are able to provide a reasonable return as if they were privately held) and held within the fund to grow it into an endowment producing annual revenues. It is also a means to stablize the city’s credit rating, which in turn allows the city to secure the lowest possible borrowing rate for any loans.
As described by the legendary May Brown:
“The city was selling land every year, putting money into general revenue to keep taxes down. Art Phillips said this has got to stop. We’re cannibalizing our land . . . The value of the PEF in those days was $100 million. The rationale was simple: citizens should share in the profits from any increase in land value.”
A fantastic concept, to be sure.
But the PEF has now grown into a fund that has reached this seemingly untouchable status, with the only money utilized out on an annual basis (publicly, at least) is $7 million to offset increases in property taxes.
I feel there is so much more that the City of Vancouver could be doing with such a collection of assets.
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February 23, 2010 - 12:14 pm |
Posted by Jonathan Ross
Colbert brutalized Ujjal...and they both loved it.
Ujjal plays the straight man well and Colbert is excellent as usual. Although, the Himalayas most definitely extend into India, so I am not sure what he was talking about. I also liked the fact that Colbert was able to pronounce his name much better than many Canadian commentators, who regularly brutalize the delivery.
The second funny piece of the day comes from…OK, wait for it…the Georgia Straight’s Charlie Smith. What a surprise.
Smith takes issue with the fact that the City of Vancouver website has a portion of it devoted to…again, wait for it…the Mayor.
Oh the horror.
And get this…he has a video promoting Vancouver as a Green Capital to the world.
I know…a disgrace of epic proportions.
I mean, it’s not like other cities have profiles of their Mayor on their websites.
That would be ridiculous.
Great reporting, as per usual Charlie. Keep up the tough investigative journalism.
