Infrastructure, housing and homelessness and responding to a changing climate are among the key issues that the incoming provincial government needs to address, says a senior spokesperson for the Union of British Columbia Municipalities.
Coun. Jenna Stoner of Squamish, who serves as UBCM's second vice-president, specifically called on the provincial government to supply local government with additional financing tools to help them meet their infrastructure needs. Growth legislated by the provincial government through housing legislation like Bill 44 and other measures requires the renewal and expansion of infrastructure, Stoner said.
A UBCM report found municipalities need $24 billion during the next decade just to replace core infrastructure. The report not only calls on the provincial government to supply $650 million each year for infrastructure needs, but also transfer a yet-to-be-negotiated percentage of the provincial property transfer tax to subsidize local efforts to create affordable housing and deal with homelessness.
The report notes local governments have done their part to help create affordable housing stock by providing land, waiving property taxes and development cost charges, but increasingly at the expense of higher property taxes and scaled-back operations in other areas. Issues related to housing and gaps in social services and health care are also weighing "heavily on local finances," according to the report.
Stoner said securing that additional funding is a "core priority" for UBCM. It will also keep a close eye on related promises by the incoming government around involuntary care of those struggling with mental health issues, as well as promises to address emergency room closures.
"I think the number of days of closures decreasing is a key benchmark that we are looking for as well as increased supports and investments for access to rural health," Stoner said.
She added her organization will also be pushing for an annual, yet-to-be-negotiated percentage of the provincial carbon tax to support local climate action projects and emergency planning and response. Communities, she said, face increased pressure to make their infrastructure resilient to a changing climate.
"That is everything from dikes to wildfire hazards to seismically upgrading our facilities and then also delivering on the responses to climate change."
Both requests start from the premise local governments know what's best for their communities as needs differ from community to community, Stoner said.
"So it's really having just the funding available to local government to make that decision."
UBCM's request for additional financial support also comes against the backdrop of B.C. facing a $9-billion deficit.
"We certainly appreciate that there are some financial pressures at the provincial level as well," Stoner said. "We know that these challenges are not going away and we need to work together in order to address them."
She added that municipalities are "stepping up in a disproportionate way to address the gaps" that the provincial government has left.
"We are here to recognize that we can be partner in providing those solutions, but the province needs to find bold and courageous ways to come to the table with the money in order for us to deliver on those expectations around affordability, health and public safety."
The calculus in the provincial legislature may have tipped in favour of municipalities when it comes to dealing with the provincial government around those issues. Speaking on Mo Amir's This is VANCOLOUR podcast last month, Port Coquitlam Mayor Brad West spoke to this point.
"(This) result is pretty positive for mayors, because it gives us a much stronger hand," West said. "If I were to use a word to describe my interactions with many people at the province, and I'm not necessarily talking about elected officials...the word I would use is arrogant. There is a level of arrogance over the last number of years in trying to advance issues and priorities important to a community and you get a nice little pat on the head and sent your way."
West added that colleagues covering the political spectrum have felt the same way.
"So what I hope to get is to get much more of a genuine partnership," he said. Municipalities will not get everything they want, he added. "Nor do I think it should be, but for this province to work, we have to be able to sit down and partner on some things and have some give-and-take."
