New Vancouver mayor tempers expectations in first State of the City address
In his first major speech as Vancouver mayor, Ken Sim delivered a State of the City address at a Vancouver Board of Trade luncheon at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver Thursday.
Sim played to the pro-business crowd by starting off riffing about the city being “open for business” on his watch.
"The next four years are going to be about awakening the giants of Vancouver industry,” he told the crowd of more than a thousand.
But while pumping the tires on commerce, he cautioned it will take time to see results on some of his election pledges.
Pressed during a news conference after the speech, Sim could not give a timeline for when we could see the first hires of his promised 100 new police officers and 100 mental health nurses – or when he expects the full complement to be on the street.
“More to come on that. But for the actual dates, these situations are pretty dynamic and they do take time,” he said.
He also said that he still hasn’t been able to secure funding commitments from other levels of government to pay for the new nurses and police officers.
“We’re going to be bold and we’re going to fund the hiring of a hundred mental health nurses, and if and when the program shows success we will go back to the province and show them an operational case for why they should be funding it,” he said, before acknowledging City of Vancouver taxpayers will be on the hook for hiring, training and paying the 100 mental health professionals.
Green Party Councillor Pete Fry attended the luncheon along with his other council colleagues.
"I'm disappointed but not surprised to hear that nobody's stepping up to the plate to actually backstop this commitment,” Fry said after Sim’s speech.
“It is widely out of the scope of the municipal government to fund mental health nurses."
Sim also touched on his promise to speed up the permit process for new construction in the city, saying he would be looking at ways to get more housing stock approved more quickly – even if that meant changing the criteria used for approvals.
“Vancouver does not have a shadow crisis. Vancouver does not have a view cone crisis. In Vancouver we have a housing crisis,” he told the crowd, which included some prominent developers.
Asked by CTV News if that meant he and his A Better City Vancouver council colleagues, who hold a voting majority, might change the city’s View Cone Policy – which restricts building heights in certain areas to protect mountain views – Sim wouldn’t rule it out.
"We'll look at everything and if it makes sense, we're amenable to adjusting our policy on it,” he said.
Throughout his speech, Sim urged patience as he and ABC implement their policies, saying there are no quick fixes for the issues facing the city.
"You know, 'It's easier to campaign than to govern' is, for sure, a cliché that often fits,” said CTV political analyst George Affleck, a former councillor himself. “I think what we heard today were big ideas with some specifics but not a lot of specifics."
As he takes charge, Sim will soon find out just how patient – or impatient – the electorate can be.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors ask Liberal government to reconsider capital gains tax change
The Canadian Medical Association is asking the federal government to reconsider its proposed changes to capital gains taxation, arguing it will affect doctors' retirement savings.
Keeping these exotic pets is 'cruel' and 'dangerous,' Canadian animal advocates say
Canadian pet owners are finding companionship beyond dogs and cats. Tigers, alligators, scorpions and tarantulas are among some of the exotic pets they are keeping in private homes, which pose risks to public safety and animal welfare, advocates say.
Prince William and wife Kate thank public for birthday messages for son Louis
Prince William and his wife Kate thanked the public for their messages which had been sent to mark the sixth birthday of their youngest son Louis on Tuesday.
She was the closest she'd ever been to meeting her biological father. Then life dealt her a blow
Anne Marie Cavner was the closest she'd ever been to meeting her biological father, but then life dealt her a blow. From an unexpected loss to a host of new relationships, a DNA test changed her life, and she doesn't regret a thing.
How quietly promised law changes in the 2024 federal budget could impact your day-to-day life
The 2024 federal budget released last week includes numerous big spending promises that have garnered headlines. But, tucked into the 416-page document are also series of smaller items, such as promising to amend the law regarding infant formula and to force banks to label government rebates, that you may have missed.
Which foods have the most plastics? You may be surprised
'How much plastic will you have for dinner, sir? And you, ma'am?' While that may seem like a line from a satirical skit on Saturday Night Live, research is showing it's much too close to reality.
'Catch-and-kill' strategy to be a focus as testimony resumes in Trump hush money case
A veteran tabloid publisher was expected to return to the witness stand Tuesday in Donald Trump's historic hush money trial.
Quebec farmers have been protesting since December. Is anyone listening?
Upset about high interest rates, growing paperwork and heavy regulatory burdens, protesting farmers have become a familiar sight across Quebec since December.
South Korean sentenced to 14 months in jail for killing 76 cats
South Korean man has been sentenced to 14 months in prison for killing 76 cats in one of the country's most gruesome cases of animal cruelty in recent years.