Daphne Bramham: Vancouver Mayor Urges Developers to Provide Re-Election Funds
Opinion: Despite promises of transparency, renters’ self-proclaimed dissident advocates turned to developers for money
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It’s a household name in Vancouver’s profitable development community and an industry captain presiding over one of the nation’s most affordable housing markets.
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Homeless writer Stanley Q. Woodbine found a spreadsheet near City Hall that also raised Kennedy Stewart’s $738,500 for re-election as mayor to fund his Forward Together Party campaign. It looks like the target list for .
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One column titled “Captain” contains the names of the president and senior management. Another column contains the goals each captain has. The other is how much each of them delivered out of the $270,842 total so far. The 37 “captains” fundraising goals range from $5,000 to her $110,000.
Forward Together declined to confirm or deny the spreadsheet’s provenance, but TEAM for a Liveable Vancouver asked Elections BC to investigate late Wednesday.
TEAM said it did not accept any personal donations from developers because it “did not want the perception that an industry regulated by the city council was funding the election.”
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In an emailed response to a direct question about the spreadsheet, Forward Together said in a statement by Executive Director Mark Hosak: We follow all election BC rules. … In August, we were the first campaign to publish our donor list, and we plan to do so again before Election Day. “
Spreadsheets are full of surprises. The first is that it was printed at all, let alone lost.
But it also speaks to the need for civic funding reform and greater transparency compared to the private campaign run by Stewart, who won the 2018 election.
Mr Stewart, a professor of political science who holds a PhD from the London School of Economics and specializes in local government governance, has written so extensively on these issues that go looking for a quote. is the embarrassment of wealth.
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In a December 2009 opinion piece for The Vancouver Sun, Stewart wrote favorably about Quebec’s law banning annual donations of more than $1,000, urging BC to: As. means to “restore public confidence” in the electoral process.
The government did. Contributions from foreigners, businesses and unions are prohibited, and in Vancouver this year, individual contributions are limited to his $1,250.
Ironically, Stewart said Raymond Louis, who was a vision counselor in 2008, received $80,000 from one donor.
Now CEO of Coromandel Properties, Louie is one of the “captains” on Stewart’s spreadsheet with a goal of delivering $2,500 and raising another $25,000.
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He’s not the only ex-politician targeted. Former Vision Vancouver executive and his director Stepan Vdovine will be tapped to raise $18,700. He is currently the Business Development Director of Amacon, a land development company.
Former BC NDP Chairman Craig Keating’s goal is $12,500. He is the Vice President of Local Government for his Strategies 360.
Hui could also be the “Raymond” mentioned in the note next to “Captain” Terry Hui’s name. is up. A section of notes read, “Raymond is following up.”
Aside from the seeming contradiction between what Stewart wrote and what he did, Forward Together’s positioning as a grassroots movement and the advocacy of tenants against land ownership and land development agencies There is a disconnect between being positioned as a person.
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In the August disclosure of $1.13 million raised between May 2018 and June 30, 2022, the average giving was $175, Stewart and Forward Together said, “Voters will be the first to get this. I believe it is essential to know who is funding the politics of the city,” Hossack’s comment was included. vote “
But now it’s clear that the real money is coming from established interests, including John Stobel, whose Reliance Properties have had two high-profile ‘renovations’ in the West End.
A note next to Stovell’s name indicates that a follow-up email regarding a $12,500 donation goal was sent to him on September 2nd by “NM”.
It’s probably Neil Monckton, who continues to receive a salary of $126,366 as the Mayor’s Chief of Staff, and “Neil” is listed elsewhere in the spreadsheet.
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The email comes just days after Reliance amended a rezoning application for a 25-story rental building on Davie and Hornby streets. We currently only offer condos.
“Captain” Francesco Aquilini, owner and land developer of the Vancouver Canucks, has a top fundraising goal of $110,000, with $64,350 already contributed this year.
Ian Gillespie, head of Westbank Properties and Creative Energy, also received a follow-up email from NM about the $25,000 goal. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau sent the letter on Aug. 30, a week before the West Bank announced a $1.4 billion loan to Senchu, which it is co-developing with Squamish First Nation.
“Captain” David Negrin, CEO of MST Developments, Vancouver’s largest landowner, has reached half of his goal of $5,000 owned by Squamish, Musqueam and the Tsleil-Waututh First Nations.
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Arnold Silber (Value Property Group), Ajay Dilawri (Dilawri Group of Companies), Carol Pan at $50,000, and Colin Bosa/Jeff Skinner (Bosa Properties Inc.) and Beau Jarvis (Wesgroup Properties) at $37,500.
Other captains include Metropolitan Property Canada, Onni Group, Jameson Development, Lenny Property, Wes Group, Intracorp, Molnar, CBRE Canada, Conwest Group, Bogner Development, Strand, Penny Farthing Homes, Third Space Property Development. Includes company executives.
It should come as no surprise that other parties haven’t weighed in on the criticism since the spreadsheet was discovered.
In silence, they are no doubt thanking the electoral gods.
dbramham@postmedia.com
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Dan Humano: Most Vancouver political parties have committed to transparency before the election.
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Dan Humano: Vancouver’s COPE asks Elections BC to investigate ‘suspicious’ donations
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Daphne Bramham: Vancouver Mayor Urges Developers to Provide Re-Election Funds
Source link Daphne Bramham: Vancouver Mayor Urges Developers to Provide Re-Election Funds