All in all, the new provincial budget is good news. It’s definitely a breath of fresh air compared to what we’ve become accustomed to during the many years of the provincial Liberals. Here are some of the highlights for me. First off is child care. The provincial NDP, with the Greens, have replaced the old…
Category: fiscal responsibility
UBC SkyTrain will haunt us for generations to come
I am so disappointed that Vancouver city council voted by a margin of 9 to 2 to approve the SkyTrain extension from Arbutus all the way to UBC. Even the three Green councillors all voted in favour of this very un-environmental proposal! As I pointed out in my recent blog on this topic, UBC professor…
The sky-high price of gullibility: The case against underground SkyTrain to UBC
The possibility of an underground Broadway SkyTrain all the way to UBC has been in the news again lately. I so hope that this does not come to pass. Let me explain why. First, let’s talk briefly about some of … Continue reading
Power + expense accounts = Moral drift
The report by BC’s Speaker of the House, Darryl Plecas, was released Jan. 21st to the legislative committee looking into the alleged misdeeds of Sergeant-at-Arms Gary Lenz and clerk Craig James. Sadly, it confirms what many in the legislature already knew and most people rightly suspect: That an atmosphere of entitlement is created in the…
Turn up the taps & cool housing prices more
For many years now housing prices in Vancouver have been moving up at a very fast pace — so fast that most of us have been priced right out of the market. Economists will forever debate the causes of this phenomenon. However, it would appear that at long last relief finally may be here. Provincial…
Developers, their fair share — and real low-cost housing
Housing was all over the news this week, but three examples really speak to the usefulness of development cost levies in this regard — when they’re used for real affordable housing. I’ve long been critical of the City of Vancouver for its policy of waiving development cost levies or DCLs when a developer agrees to…
Better to debate than deliberately disrupt
The provincial NDP are proposing a new school tax on homes worth more than $3 million. The revenue projections are in the vicinity of $200 million and would largely be used for seismic upgrades for school buildings. Many of the homes that would be affected by this new tax are located in the Vancouver-Point Grey…