Outgoing Richmond Mayor Malcolm Brodie says the close timing of the municipal election and the provincial vote on Oct. 24 could confuse voters.
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Outgoing Richmond Mayor Malcolm Brodie said the city and B.C. voters could be “very confused” because Richmond is holding municipal elections and provincial elections just one week apart.
Brodie said the confusion could “kick into high gear” as signs for both elections appear on city boulevards.
Municipal voters in Richmond will choose a mayor, eight city councillors and seven school trustees on Saturday, Oct. 17.
On Saturday, Oct. 24, voters will elect four members of the legislative assembly for the Richmond Centre, Richmond-Queensborough, Richmond-Bridgeport and Richmond-Steveston ridings.
Brodie said there are “distinct differences” between municipal and provincial responsibilities, but also “a great deal of overlap.”
He said the provincial and federal governments’ jurisdictions are outlined in the Canadian Constitution, with the province able to delegate authority to municipalities under the Local Government Act and the Community Charter.
Brodie described municipalities as handling many day-to-day services, saying cities are responsible for “everything you see around you,” including infrastructure and planning, while the province handles health care, social programs and education.
He said municipalities therefore rely largely on property taxes, estimating that cities receive about 10 to 12 cents of all tax dollars.
Brodie also pointed to what he called “a great deal of imprecision” in how provincial and municipal powers are divided, saying municipalities often step in where other levels of government leave gaps.
As examples, he cited emergency shelter for unhoused people, saying provincial funding operates shelters in Richmond while the city provides land for the buildings.
He also said that last year, when the Richmond Board of Education cut back a food program for low-income students, the city helped fund it.
Brodie said he regularly hears messages from residents who assume city responsibility for issues they encounter in Richmond, such as school matters, and that residents may also assume the city can address encampments on provincial land.
He said when people are told it is a provincial or federal responsibility, they may think the city is “passing the buck,” but “you’re really not.”
Brodie said the province can override municipalities despite the supposed separation of powers, pointing to provincial legislation that, he said, required municipalities to do away with single-family zoning.
He said Bills 44 and 47 required single-family areas to be zoned for between four and six housing units and allowed density within 800 metres of rapid transit, adding that Richmond city council later obtained densification pulled back “temporarily” in the historical neighbourhood through a five-year deferral.
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