Received an email the other day from a reader who reminded me of in April 2017.
It was about city council and how much money each of the 11 elected representatives earned and whether they bring value to the job; , it鈥檚 more than $82,000 for councillors, more than $160,000 for mayor.
The reader asked for a follow-up.
So, I鈥檓 obliging鈥ort of.
First, here鈥檚 what I wrote back then鈥�
After being a dedicated council watcher for what seems like an eternity, I can say that not every politician at city hall always earns their keep, or brings value to an argument.
I鈥檓 not going to name names.
But let me give you a clue鈥�
Grab a piece of paper, write down each councillor鈥檚 name. Next to it, write at least one good idea or policy that he or she has introduced that could have made or made a noticeable difference in this city.
Not the party, the person.
If you get stumped, then you鈥檒l have your answer or answers to what will become an $82,000-a-year question in next year鈥檚 civic election.
Well, that election is only a few months away. In fact, it鈥檚 Oct. 20.
So now that we know only four incumbents are seeking re-election, it鈥檚 probably a good time to get out that pen and paper and get a head start on rating Melissa De Genova (NPA), Heather Deal (Vision Vancouver), Adriane Carr (Green Party) and former NPAer Hector Bremner (Yes Party).
But don鈥檛 expect me to help you do the research. Loads of information is available on the city鈥檚 website, where you can find out how each of them voted on, say, tax increases, the Northeast False Creek Plan, various housing developments and bike lanes.
You can even watch previous council meetings, where you can see what each of these four had to say about an issue, and how they conducted themselves on the council floor. You can also email them鈥攆irst name, dot, surname @ vancouver.ca to challenge them.
Reading the Courier is also a good suggestion for insight.
As for the dozens of council wannabees, some of them, including mayoral candidates, have been very active on social media. Some have held news conferences. All, I expect, will be going full tilt come September鈥攐r at least they should be, if they鈥檙e interested in getting elected.
Housing is obviously the number one issue in this campaign.
But incumbents and wannabees may want to include three other issues in their campaign, as identified by city manager Sadhu Johnston in a memo he wrote to council in March of this year. The memo, which was recently posted on the city鈥檚 website, had to do with the launch of a 鈥渘ew look鈥� home page on the website.
Here鈥檚 what Johnston wrote: 鈥淭he home page has been visually updated and re-organized to make it easier for users to access the information they most need. For example, we know from our statistics that some of the topics users of our site are most interested in are tax management, permits and garbage pick-up, so those items are now prominent as part of a 鈥榪uick click menu.鈥欌��
So there you go鈥攊t鈥檚 all about taxes, permits and garbage.
Adjust your platforms accordingly, candidates. 听
As for getting up to speed on housing, voters and candidates should probably check out an event Aug. 28听hosted by the City of 麻豆传媒映画Renters Advisory Committee and LandlordBC. It鈥檚 called 鈥淒elivering rental housing in your community鈥� and runs from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at city hall.
You must
Emphasis will be on the 鈥渇inancial considerations and the critical role municipalities and their political leaders play in the process.鈥� What you will learn, according to organizers, is 鈥渋nvaluable knowledge to inform your campaign and ensure you can speak with authority on the subject of rental housing when canvassing your constituents and debating your competitors.鈥�
And, hopefully, when speaking to a reporter.
@Howellings
听
