 Populism, development, and the drama of White Rock politics | | |  | | | What happens when a populist movement storms into office on a platform of change, and then has to govern?
The City of White Rock has proven an interesting case study the last four years.
In 2018, it was one of those towns where the all-candidate meetings were packed and the comments on the local political Facebook pages were angrier than most.
Campaigning primarily on issues of development (too much) and transparency (too little), a new political party called Democracy Direct White Rock swept to power. Former B.C. General Employees' Union (BCGEU) president Darryl Walker became mayor, all four council candidates were elected, and they set out to reshape how the seaside community of about 20,000 people was run.
But then an interesting thing happened: after initially working together as a team to restrict tower heights in the centre of the municipality, the coalition began to splinter. Walker started voting more often in favour of new housing, saying he had evolved his thinking.
“Before this term, I didn't realize how slow and arduous municipal politics can be,” he said, talking about the work to rebuild the pier and the need to upgrade roads and sewers.
“We've got developers that come before us that are willing to work … with us on affordable housing. And the tendency from a couple of councillors has been to turn it down.” |  | Those councillors have primarily been Erika Johanson and Scott Kristjanson, who ran with Walker. Not surprisingly, they tell a different story.
“There's a honeymoon. And then when you get to the nitty gritty, the day-to-day stuff, he was terrible,” said Johanson, who argues Walker turned his back on what he campaigned on, and allowed staff to control too much of the city’s agenda.
“They only answer questions very specifically as we ask them, they don't volunteer any information. That’s got to change,” she said.
Johanson and the city are in the midst of a protracted legal battle over whether Johanson bullied and harassed staff or not. Walker has been unable to convince the majority of his colleagues to support him on a number of votes.
And Democracy Direct has been dissolved: Walker is asking for “a council that’s progressive” and will support more mid-rise developments, while Johanson promises a mayor candidate who will challenge Walker.
In short, it’s been messy — and it's another example that campaigning is a lot different from governing.
“Walking in the first day as a mayor three and a half years ago,” said Walker, “I didn't know what I know now.” | | |  | | | 1. Vancouver | | | In their final major week of meetings prior to the election (there will be a couple of smaller housekeeping things closer to the vote), council approved a social housing tower next to an incoming SkyTrain station at Broadway and Arbutus after six days of meetings. It was the last of this council's famed marathon meetings, which led us to explore just why Vancouver has become known for inefficiency at the council table. Meanwhile, one of Kennedy Stewart's chief rivals for mayor unveiled his park board candidates platform — which reversed his promise to try and get rid of the board.
Read more | | |  | | | 2. Heat warnings | For many municipalities this week, the focus wasn't on campaigns or bylaws, but warning the public about the giant heat wave covering much of the province, opening cooling centres and trying to learn the lessons from the many tragedies of 2021. And if you live in Metro Vancouver or Greater Victoria, we have a tool that indicates how at risk your specific neighbourhood is for extreme temperatures.
Read more | | | |  | | | 3. Port Moody | Mayor Rob Vagramov ended speculation over his political future by announcing he wouldn't seek re-election in October, following a contentious four years in office for all sorts of reasons. Soon after, Steve Milani, one of his main supporters on council, announced his own bid for mayor. One imagines someone who was less supportive of Vagramov will also make an announcement sooner than later. Read more in the Tri-City News | | | | | | Share this newsletter | | or subscribe if this was
forwarded to you. | | | | That's it for this week! In the meantime, check out the latest headlines at cbc.ca/bc and follow our municipal affairs reporter Justin McElroy on Twitter. And if you have any questions you might want answered in a future mailbag, drop Justin a line at metromatters@cbc.ca. | | | |
