Posts from — February 2009

Three reports at today’s meeting of the city’s Transportation and Traffic Committee will excite the bike, bus and train enthusiasts out there.

First, this report summarizes recent city bicycle traffic counts, showing Vancouver is doing well  at a 10 to 12 percent share but has a long way to go to catch up to urban cycling leaders like Copenhagen and Amsterdam, which are achieving up to 40 percent . As Mayor Gregor Robertson pointed out during the discussion, this was undoubtedly require a “bold and courageous” commitment to more dedicated bike routes. [A reader has pointed out that this post overstates the case. Vancouver’s bicycle mode share is only at 10 to 12 percent in the downtown core and the share citywide is a more modest 3 to 5 percent, still better than the rest of the region, but far from the ideal.)

Next up was the update on all-door loading on the 99 B-Line. Unsuprising verdict: it helps. But traffic planner Lon Leclair and his colleagues emphasized what any Broadway straphanger already knows. This route is at capacity, already carrying 30,000 trips a day. That’s more than any North American light rail line. Our next stop has to be rapid transit with a Millennium Line extension to Arbutus, at least.

Finally, this decision to proceed with an overpass on Powell St. to take cars, buses and bikes over the rail line that links the waterfront with the Grandview Cut and False Creek flats. Grade separation here and through Strathcona will help rail traffic move to the port more quickly and efficiently. Engineers promised to make the overpass as bike-friendly as possible.

My comments Friday on CTV about the city’s decision not to hold a major public 2010 countdown celebration provoked a deeply irritated rebuke from one viewer.

His comments included a valuable perspective on how all of us, politicians most of all, should behave in the coming year. (Sorry, I have been unable to find a link to the CTV piece.)

I was asked if I had received any complaints about the lack of a public celebration. I outlined the civic activities that are being organized, but replied that no, the only complaint I was aware of was from the chief of staff to the former mayor. A true statement, but the wrong answer, as  Vancouver’s D. Bremner pointed out:

“As we approach the games, people on both sides of the equation have passionate opinions — present case as a glowing example.  With nearly a billion $ on the line with the village, ‘big brother’ security lurking in the shadowy wings, along with the duplicitous scarf covered faces of the protesters, this is a powder keg waiting to go off.

“As a citizen of Vancouver I want the protesters — if they’re honest enough to show who they are — to have a voice, and the supporters to have a wonderful celebration of worldwide competition free of the trappings of partisan or even national politics.

“I think to achieve that balance it’s really important for all of our municipal politicians to embrace the concerns of its citizenry, give those concerns the time of day, acknowledge that they’re important and make a considered response.

“This has to be done now, not just a week from the games when prejudices are entrenched and trust has vanished faster than a bob-sled team.  Failing to do so — as I have to say your response on CTV appeared (however edited it may have been – perhaps there was balance that was cut out) — generates a sense of frustration and disempowerment.

“Today, at the end of a long week for this fellow, that resulted in a somewhat barbed e-mail tiff.  With others involved it may result in something far more damaging . . . to Vancouver’s image, to the image of honest competition and sport, to the health and well being of spectators.

“I know that we all know that ‘people’ are passionate about the Olympics.  What I would urge you and your fellow councillors to remember is that a sound bite can soothe or enflame.

“For those that matter, it’s not what you say, but that you have given it some thought that counts, and not just the thoughts of politics or re-election, but an honest and objective opinion – emphasis on the honest first and the objective second.

“Take that into account, whether I agree with you or would argue with you ’til I’m blue in the face, and I’ll be a happy camper!”

Point taken.

Eri Ishii's Where Everyone Lived Happily Ever After, a view of San Francisco from her new show at the Ian Tan Gallery.

Eri Ishii, one of the driving forces behind the campaign to save artists’ space at 901 Main St. has opened her second show in less than a year at the Ian Tan Gallery on Granville St.

Like her last show, this exhibit focuses on the urban landscape, with work from San Francisco, Calgary, Sechelt and Commercial Drive.

The decline in the housing market has taken the steam out of Onni Development’s determination to convert the landmark building on Main into a private condominium residence for Amacon’s wealthy owner. Talks continue, however, on new studio space for the 901 group at Onni’s proposed new project at 7th and Scotia.

Millennium Development Corp., the Olympic Village developer, is not “off the hook for millions” as the result of any refinancing deal obtained by the City of Vancouver, as reported in a Globe and Mail headline yesterday. (The online story dropped this erroneous claim.) Nor has the city completed an $800 million refinancing, as reported in the same story.

In fact, as the paper reports this morning, council has approved the hiring of Bruce Tidball, one of the top construction managers in the country, to oversee the city’s interest in the Millennium project. As city manager Penny Ballem makes clear, he will have ultimate decision-making authority to do everything necesssary to ensure the project is ready for the 2010 Olympic Games at the best possible price for taxpayers.

No new borrowing will take place without a competitive process to ensure the best financial terms for taxpayers. This is an obvious step the previous NPA council skipped when it took on the Fortress Investment Group loan — and a market-ready completion guarantee — in a secret 2007 decision. Yesterday’s report was wrong to claim a new deal is in place, but did get this right: the new financial plan emerging from negotiations with Fortress will save taxpayers millions compared to the options that confronted the Vision council after the November election, thanks to the NPA’s mishandling of the file.

Why, some may ask, did the city require a emergency one-day session of the Legislature to obtain amendments to the Vancouver Charter if negotiations for new borrowing are still continuing? The answer: because the city lacked legal authority to borrow the funds necessary to change its financial undertakings with Fortress. Without that authority, the city could not engage in good faith talks for a new plan. The tools necessary to protect taxpayers did not exist, another disastrous oversight of the previous NPA council majority.

The June 2007 decision to take all the risk for the $1.1 billion Olympic Village project was not only costly, and contrary to public assurances about the financial plan, it was made without taking basic precautions to protect the public interest in the event of defaults.

Since being sworn in December 8,  Gregor Robertson’s Vision council has taken steps to begin into negotiations with Fortress, reinforced the city’s legal team, stabilized month-to-month financing of the project, secured a vital amendment to the Vancouver Charter, established stronger project oversight, ordered a complete review by the city’s external auditors, created a special advisory committee of the city’s top developers, disclosed the details of the existing financial plan to taxpayers and agreed on further release of documents related to the project. Talks are proceeding well with Fortress and the resources are in place to ensure a competitive process by new lenders.

“Because of some deft negotiating on the city’s part,” says the Globe‘s Gary Mason, “this project isn’t looking like the financial disaster it once was. Taxpayers could still be on the hook for millions, but maybe not the hundreds of millions once thought.” That disaster is the NPA’s legacy.