For four days in the middle of September, hundreds of mayors, councillors and municipal representatives came together in Vancouver for the annual Union of British Columbia Municipalities convention.
Delegates voted to endorse 161 resolutions out of more than 200 that were submitted.
UBCM delegates endorsed resolutions calling for improved treatment and support for decriminalization while also identifying additional measures to prohibit consumption in additional areas commonly used by children.
Many sessions focused on the fallout from the 2023 wildfire season and the exacerbating effects of climate change.
The theme this year for the convention was ‘Balancing Act.’
The Record spoke with Comox Mayor Nicole Minions and Cumberland Mayor Vicky Brown about some of their biggest takeaways from the convention and topics that were most important for their respective municipalities. Courtenay Mayor Bob Wells was not available by print deadline.
Nicole Minions, Mayor of Comox
“My biggest takeaway was that there is a diverse set of challenges B.C. municipalities are facing; and, working together as a region alongside the province is key to addressing them effectively and pro-actively.
This year there were 211 resolutions over the three resolution sessions (which from memory is a record high from the typical 75 – 200 resolutions in past years).”
Q: How many members of council and town staff attended the convention?
We had in attendance myself, five councillors (six out of seven of our council) and our chief administrative officer Jordan Wall.
Councillor Swift was not able to attend.
Q: Were you able to connect with other government officials?
Comox had five minister meetings and one meeting with Opposition Leader Kevin Falcon.
As mayor, I attended a few of the CVRD meetings and one Cumberland minister meeting in regard to watershed protection.
Q: What are some of the other takeaways from UBCM?
Our takeaways are that the province is listening and is aware of what our provincial and unique issues are. In some areas, they are seeing great success. Where others like the Ministry of Housing and the Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions, there is work to be done at all three levels of government.
We need to ‘roll up our sleeves’ and work regionally, cross-government, and cross-partisan for the benefit of all citizens.
Collaborating with K’omoks First Nation, Cumberland, Courtenay, the CVRD, and neighbouring regional districts is key to seeing success and change in the areas of focus that we are advocating the province for.
Our leadership (mayors, chair and chief) meet on a monthly basis together to discuss our communities and deep dive into all areas of focus (with a heavy weight on ‘housing’).
Q: What are some specific areas of focus for Comox during the convention?
1) Cost of housing across the housing spectrum (from subsidized rental housing to cost of market housing).
2) Opioid crisis affecting our community.
3) Public safety for our residents and businesses.
4) Watershed protection of our drinking water.
5) Being ‘shovel ready’ for any provincial grants that may come for our future Comox pump track, as part of our outdoor youth recreation focus.
“It was a whirlwind of meetings, but I think the takeaway for me was that working regionally and collaborating regionally is very impactful,” said Brown. “A meeting was set by Courtenay with the ministry of housing and everyone attended so that we were all advocating for the same thing.
“During that meeting, I was able to speak about the housing project that we have in line now with BC Housing waiting for funding in the lead-up for five years and we’re hoping to get funding for this round.”
“We also collectively supported the emerging needs for housing in Courtney and elsewhere in the region,” added Brown. “Working regionally was really I think impactful and I’m happy that we are able to do that as a region. We have really collaborative leadership happening right now, which is great.”
6) Concern for the cost of our RCMP going up from 70 per cent to 90 per cent, after we pass 15,000 people; and, how we make the cost more equitable in our region.
Cumberland Mayor Vicky Brown
Q: How many members of council and town staff attended the convention?
“A delegation of four attended; myself, Couns. Sean Sullivan and Troy Therrien and chief administrative officer Michelle Mason.”
Q: Were you able to connect with other government officials?
“Our biggest meetings were with the Minister of Water, Land, and Resource Stewardship Nathan Cullen and Parliamentary Secretary Fin Donnelly. We met, as a region, with the regional district, the City of Courtenay, and the Town of Comox, all advocating for watershed protection. That was a really great and positive collaborative regional meeting. Our plan is to get in line for funding from the Watershed Security Fund and find ways to protect a healthy watershed.”
Q: What are some of the other takeaways from UBCM?
“It was a whirlwind of meetings, but I think the takeaway for me was that working regionally and collaborating regionally is very impactful. A meeting was set by Courtenay with the ministry of housing and everyone attended so that we were all advocating for the same thing.
“During that meeting, I was able to speak about the housing project that we have in line now with BC Housing waiting for funding in the lead-up for five years and we’re hoping to get funding for this round.
“We also collectively supported the emerging needs for housing in Courtenay and elsewhere in the region. Working regionally was really I think impactful and I’m happy that we are able to do that as a region. We have really collaborative leadership happening right now, which is great.
Q: What are some specific areas of focus for Cumberland during the convention?
“We also met with the minister of tourism because we’ve accidentally become an international destination. We’ve had 237,000 (people) hitting our trails last year. At the moment, we don’t have the capacity, as a small village, to benefit economically from tourism directly.
“Our businesses benefit from tourism but there are all these extra costs that are being driven up by tourism including parking management, and trail management. We have no mechanism and no fund funding stream, to help us manage it.
“We also met with the staff from the ministry of solicitor general, around policing. It’s likely that Cumberland will hit 5,000 residents in the next census. When we hit that population level, according to the Police Act, we are required to increase our contribution to funding police by up to 70 per cent. We have reserves to sort of soften the increase in taxes, but if we didn’t, it would be an automatic 26 per cent increase to our tax base. That’s a massive increase. We’re trying to negotiate how many officers we get and how to advocate for a gentler increase in funding levels and soften those increases.