Vancouver Courier Opinion: Don’t settle for ice cream in politics: (Who I'm voting for!)

                                                              Photo by Dan Toulgoet Vancouver Courier

Michael Geller / Vancouver Courier
November 10, 2014 04:02 PM

As I reflect on the 2014 Vancouver election campaign, I am reminded of a short story I received during the final days of the 2008 municipal election:

The most eye-opening civics lesson I ever had was while teaching third grade this year. The U.S. presidential election was heating up and some of the children showed an interest.

I decided we would have an election for a class president. We would choose our nominees. They would make a campaign speech and the class would vote.

To simplify the process, candidates were nominated by other class members. We discussed what kinds of characteristics these students should have. We got many nominations and from those, Jamie and Olivia were picked to run for the top spot.

The class had done a great job in their selections. Both candidates were good kids.

I thought Jamie might have an advantage because he got lots of parental support.

I had never seen Olivia’s mother.

The day arrived when they were to make their speeches Jamie went first. He had specific ideas about how to make our class a better place. He ended by promising to do his very best. Everyone applauded. He sat down and Olivia came to the podium.

Her speech was concise. She said, “If you will vote for me, I will give you ice cream.”She sat down.

 

The class went wild. “Yes! Yes! We want ice cream.”  

She surely would say more. She did not have to. A discussion followed.

How did she plan to pay for the ice cream? She wasn’t sure. Would her parents buy it or would the class pay for it. She didn’t know.

The class really didn’t care. All they were thinking about was ice cream.

Jamie was forgotten. Olivia won by a land slide.

All candidates running for office offer ice cream. Fifty per cent of the people react like nine-year-olds. They want ice cream. The other fifty per cent know they’re going to have to feed the cow and clean up the mess.

During this past campaign, while no one promised ice cream, all parties made a lot of other promises.

We were promised a subway along West Broadway even though the Mayors’ Council says Vancouver will have to pay for under grounding, if required for aesthetic reasons.

We were promised the most open city hall in Canada.

We were promised free swimming lessons and more swimming pools.

We were promised a $30/month transit-pass and a tax on vacant foreign-owned properties.

We were promised a reduction in harbour oil tanker traffic and no more pipelines.

We were promised counter-flow traffic lanes and more free parking times.

We were promised 4,000 plus units of rental housing and 1,000 plus childcare spaces.

While many voters may be influenced by these promises, others will wisely question which are realistic given the city’s limited powers and funding constraints.

Wise voters will also question which candidates are most likely to deliver on their promises.

In last week’s column, I urged Courier readers to learn about the candidates running for council, park and school board. I suggested we choose the best candidates, regardless of party affiliation, and the letter with which their name begins.

With this in mind, and given a desire for both experience and new ideas, I will be giving serious consideration to the following candidates.

Vision’s Geoff Meggs is a very intelligent, experienced politician with much to offer; as does Heather Deal.

NPA’s George Affleck and Ian Robertson are two experienced politicians who could again bring a practical perspective to council debates.

The Green Party’s Adriane Carr has proven herself to be a dedicated politician. I would expect the same from thoughtful newcomer Cleta Brown, who cares very much about social justice.

At park board, the Green Party’s Stuart Mackinnon along with NPA’s John Coupar, and newcomer Stephane Mouttet could all bring greater balance to deliberations.

For school board, the Green’s Janet Fraser has a most impressive resume. Fraser Ballantyne, Penny Noble and Chris Richardson could also be good additions.

For mayor, I believe Kirk LaPointe is the best person to manage what could be a very diverse council and hopefully fulfill his promise to create a more open and transparent city hall.

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Vancouver Courier Opinion: Look beyond your ABCs at the ballot box November 5, 2014

Do you remember the late Gim Huey? Carole Taylor certainly does.

In 1986, Gim Huey was seeking a spot on the NPA city council slate. He packed the nomination meeting with scores of recently signed-up supporters, many of whom had trouble reading English. Since the NPA was running a nine council candidate slate and his name started with the letter “H,” he instructed his supporters to vote for the first nine names on the ballot. He was elected.

Unfortunately Carole Taylor’s name started with a “T” and appeared 12th on the ballot. She was not elected. She subsequently decided to run as an independent candidate and won. She went on to become one of British Columbia’s most admired and respected politicians and public figures.

Huey placed 15th and went on to lose four more elections.

I think of Gim Huey and Carole Taylor every election year as I review the long list of candidates running for city council, school board and park board. This year there are 119 people seeking 27 seats.  Of the 49 candidates running for council, 38 represent seven different parties and the other 11 are independents.

Although there have been good independent candidates in recent years such as Sandy Garossino, no independent has won a seat on council since Taylor’s 1986 victory.

Unfortunately, most of us know very little about the 49 council candidates, other than perhaps some incumbents. That is because the party campaigns and media tend to focus on mayoral candidates, not council candidates. This is a mistake since the 10 winning councillors will each have a vote equal to that of the mayor.

While some park board and school board candidates have fared a bit better, most are also not well known.

Consequently, many voters will be tempted to vote for a party slate, even though every party has some weaker candidates. Other voters will start at the beginning of the alphabetical list and put marks beside candidates’ names until they run out of X’s.

As a result, those candidates whose names start with A, B and C will likely do better than those whose names start with T. Just ask Carole Taylor.

Many more residents will decide not to vote, believing this is better than voting for candidates they know little about, other than the number of signs they may have in the neighbourhood.

I would like to suggest a different approach.

This year we can learn about the candidates from various websites. To begin, there are those of the parties. In addition to COPE, Green, NPA and Vision Vancouver, you may want to check out OneCity, VancouverFirst and the Cedar Party.

You can also learn about candidates in the City of Vancouver’s website (vancouver.ca) or explore a new website called myvotematters.ca that includes information on many candidates and issues facing the electorate.

Finally, you can find an extensive Voters Guide in the print version of the Vancouver Courier and online election coverage in the paper’s Vancouver Votes 2014 section, including candidate profiles and dozens of excellent news stories.

Sadly, in the last election almost two thirds of Vancouver residents did not vote. Ironically, this didn’t stop many from complaining after the fact about council, school and park board decisions.

This year I hope more people will vote, especially since the 10 other people on Vancouver city council could turn out to be as important as the mayor. It may well be that candidates other than those running for Vision or NPA could hold the balance of power for the next four years. That’s right — four years.

There are also many important issues facing the park and school boards. We need to elect commissioners offering various points of view.

With the election just 10 days away, now is a good time to learn about the candidates. Let us not be like Gim Huey’s people who blindly voted from the top of the alphabet. Instead, vote for the best people, regardless of party affiliation or the letter with which their name begins.

Vancouver Courier Opinion: City of Vancouver laneway homes should be sellable October 29 2014

Last Saturday approximately 500 people wandered through Vancouver's back lanes looking at new laneway houses. 

Last Saturday, I joined approximately 500 people wandering the back lanes of Vancouver taking their shoes off and then putting them back on. We were participating in the fifth annual Vancouver Heritage Foundation Laneway Housing Tour that showcased eight laneway homes around the city.

Now some might wonder why a heritage organization would be organizing a laneway housing tour. The answer is simple. It wanted to demonstrate how adding a laneway house behind a house can be a positive way to retain heritage and character homes.

This year’s tour included six houses built after 2009 when the City of Vancouver amended its zoning bylaws to permit laneway houses in some single family zones. However, it also included a 900-square-foot laneway house behind a West 11th home that was constructed in the 1890s, and a 1,600-square-foot house built in 1990 behind a 1912 character home on Maple St.

What was significant about these two properties was unlike the smaller houses built under the city’s laneway housing program which must be rented, they could be sold. That is because in some zones the city allows a laneway or coach house, as they are sometimes called, to be sold when a heritage house is being preserved.

I have had a longstanding interest in laneway houses dating back to the 1960s when I first discovered London mews houses. As a CMHC planner in 1976, I oversaw a study exploring opportunities for “sensitive infill” that proposed laneway housing for Vancouver. In 2008 I formed Laneway Cottages Inc. anticipating changes in Vancouver’s zoning bylaws to permit laneway homes, noting that this had been one of the recommendations of the earlier EcoDensity initiative.

Unfortunately, given the way the initial laneway zoning bylaw was drafted, it did not permit the kind of laneway houses many were seeking, namely predominantly single storey cottage-like homes for sale.

The earlier Vancouver Heritage Foundation tours demonstrated how laneway houses could be a very effective and charming way to increase the density in a neighbourhood without significantly compromising its character. However, there was often a shortage of parking since the zoning did not require any parking space for the laneway unit.

Furthermore, the garages in many early laneway homes had large windows and in-floor heating, making it obvious they would be converted to living space at some time in the future.

Given that some single-family lots could have three dwelling units (a main dwelling, a basement suite and laneway unit) without any off-street parking, this resulted in numerous and valid complaints about parking in some neighbourhoods.

The city has hopefully addressed this problem by modifying the regulations to discourage garages from being used as living space.

From discussions with laneway house builders it appears a large number are not being constructed as rental units, but rather as homes for relatives. In some instances, the children are moving into a laneway house, with the intention of moving into the big house at a later date. In others, one or both parents are moving into the laneway unit.

Despite some complaints, I believe the program is working. However, many would like to see the city permit some laneway units to be sold, rather than remain as rental, resulting in more affordable ownership housing in established neighbourhoods.

During my recent trip to England, I learned that the government is exploring ways to encourage those 55 and older to move out of larger homes to free up their homes for families with children. However, for older people, a major constraint is often the lack of appropriate alternative accommodation.

A similar problem exists in Vancouver. Many older households would gladly sell their larger houses but they don’t want to move into an apartment. However, they would happily buy a smaller infill house in their neighbourhood if this type of housing was available. Similarly, young couples would buy a small laneway house to get into the market.

On Nov. 15 we will go to the polls. This is a good opportunity to vote for those politicians who support innovative approaches to the provision of more affordable housing choices, such as laneway housing for sale.

Vancouver Courier Opinion: Lessons from London on Foreign Home Buyers October 22, 2014

Comparisons between London and Vancouver's foreign ownership of real estate offers insights into possible solutions for vacant homes, 

Mayor Gregor Robertson and London Mayor Boris Johnson during a visit in London several years ago. In June, Johnson urged local authorities in his country to "whack up council tax" on houses that remain empty for more than a year - See

A radical plan to stop rich overseas residents from buying houses and new condominium properties as investments will be published in a report by a leading right-wing think tank on Monday.

Concerned that many middle- and lower-income earners who cannot afford to buy are being forced to pay high rents, the report calls on government officials to adopt a scheme similar to one operating in Australia, which ensures no sale can take place to overseas buyers unless it will add to housing stock.

Such a system would mean that no existing home could be sold to a foreign buyer. Furthermore, new units could only be purchased by non-residents if their investment will result in one or more additional properties being built.

Before you get too happy or upset with this proposal, I should point out it does not apply to Vancouver. It was made earlier this year in London, England from where I am writing this column.

It is interesting to compare foreign-owned vacant properties in London and Vancouver.

The 10 suites at the top of the Shard are on the market at prices between 30 and 50 million pounds each. Few local buyers are expected to buy them.

A UK property firm estimated that in 2013, 70 per cent of “new-build” properties in Central London went to foreign investors, while 30 per cent of London’s luxury homes worth more than £1 million were bought by non-UK residents.

The problem was not confined to the top end of the market, since overseas buyers were also acquiring less expensive units in new developments. While the situation may be good news for real estate agents and those wanting to sell to foreign buyers, it is not good news for those being priced out at the bottom of the market.

In London there is also a concern that foreign investment is distorting what developers are building, with disproportionately more high-end developments targeted to these buyers. Last year, the UK chancellor announced he was closing a loophole that allowed foreign investors to make huge profits on sales of UK homes by avoiding any capital gains tax. A 28 per cent capital gains tax will begin in April 2015. In Canada, foreign investors already pay tax on any real estate gains.

The UK has also imposed a 15 per cent “stamp duty rate” for foreign investors who buy through corporate shell companies. In comparison, Hong Kong now charges an extra 15 per cent tax for all non-residents.

The opposition Labour Party is proposing a “Mansion Tax” that would apply to homes costing £2 million or more ($3.7 million). It would equate to an additional payment of £250 per month ($470) although those earning less than £42,000 ($77,000) would be allowed to defer payment until they sell or die.

The UK government, local politicians and others are also advocating that local councils impose higher property taxes on foreign investors who leave homes empty.

This past June, London mayor Boris Johnson added his voice by urging local authorities to “whack up council tax” by as much as 10 times current levels on houses that remain empty for more than a year.

Local authorities can already impose a 50 per cent tax increase if a property remains vacant after two years. However, local councils are not pursuing the additional tax because of the administrative difficulties in determining which properties should be penalized.  

Some absentee owners are avoiding the council tax surcharge by “moving in a table and chair.”

Liam Bailey, global head of research at the estate agent Knight Frank, told the Independent in May: “The problem with measures to tackle empty homes or under-occupied homes, whether sensible or not, fundamentally comes down to practicalities. Namely, how government can actually define and then identify empty homes. The practical implications of the policy are likely to be limited.”

What is significant is that in the U.K., the federal government is very much a part of the conversation.

In Vancouver, the federal government has been silent.

For these reasons, notwithstanding the national attention COPE mayoral candidate Meena Wong has attracted with her call for special municipal taxes on foreign-owned empty properties, one must question whether this is at all realistic.

On the other hand, NPA mayoral candidate Kirk LaPointe’s proposal to study what programs have worked and not worked in other jurisdictions may not be as ill-advised as some critics have claimed.

London! Where does one start?

This is the building that melted the Jaguar on the street. To address the problem a mesh has been installed over the facade.

I recently spent four days in London and found that I could not stop taking photos....of old buildings and new buildings and old and new buildings together.  I must say, I much prefer the old buildings, although some of the new ones are definitely quite impressive, if not beautiful.

This is the 1.5B pound Shard. It's almost entirely empty. At the top are 10 residential suites that are on the market for between 30 and 50 million pounds. They are not expected to sell to Brits.

So here is a photo gallery, which I can hopefully look back on years from now when I can no longer walk for 7 hours in a day, and London looks very different.
As we discuss ways to increase density in Vancouver without resorting to highrise towers, I can't help but think there's a place for terraced housing like the hundreds of thousands of units found throughout the city. Here is just a taste of some of the Georgian terraced housing I saw.

I was also impressed with the efforts to green the city, from the new buses, to literally adding greenery to existing buildings. I was also surprised by the number of bicycles in the city, as evidenced outside Waterloo train station.

I liked this piece of sculpture outside the Channel 4 TV station.

It's as popular as the day it was first opened.

I can't wait to see how successful this program is....then we can institute it in Vancouver

When I first saw this building along South Bank I had no idea what it was.

This is what it will be....an addition to the Tate Modern.

This is an impressive temporary art installation at the Tower of London, related to Remembrance Day. The ceramic poppies cost 25 pounds each with the funds going to charity.

Since I stayed at a Melia hotel in Madrid and met the company senior officer, I decided to stay at the London Melia....the White House. Apparently it was once an apartment building and I was told Marilyn Monroe and others stayed here when in London...apparently it was a place to meet.

Canadian dollars at work at Trafalgar Square

Hopefully someone can tell me about this particular piece of sculpture I saw on a building during a tour of the city.

The latest design for the London double-decker

I was disappointed to learn that many of the really charming, historic London pubs are now owned by the same outfit, with exactly the same menu. Pity

I came upon this clever idea at Marks & Spencers cafe. Place the device on the table after ordering food and the waiter finds you!