Mayor Malcolm Brodie sat down with the Richmond Sentinel and TV host Jim Gordon in a fireside chat to talk about 2021 and how council continued to steer the city through the challenges of COVID-19. 

Community safety

Council has worked hard to increase the complement of RCMP by 51 officers and Fire-Rescue by 36 personnel to ensure everyone’s safety. The city added 110 traffic safety cameras. In addition, a policy was passed that requires city staff and council members to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 to return to the workplace.

Finances

A tax increase of 3.86 per cent was proposed to cover the additional expense for the increase of RCMP and Fire-Rescue personnel. The increase also enables the city to maintain the same level of services, and allows for an e-commerce dispatch service. It includes a one per cent levy that is put aside each year for facility improvements.

Climate

With the intense heat last summer, the city had to set up a number of cooling centres for people needing assistance. The recent flooding in the Lower Mainland also raised public concern in Richmond. 

The city spends $12 to $15 million a year on dikes and drainage systems, monitoring all the elements that come into play and investing yearly in our systems now rather than waiting. As Brodie explained: pay for it now or pay a lot more later if we don’t. 

Environment and sustainability

The city introduced a bylaw that comes into effect this March to eliminate the use of plastic bags and styrofoam containers. When the city formulated a plan two years ago, it was one of the first cities in B.C. to take action. The city has an extensive sustainability report to ensure Richmond is reducing its environmental impact.

Child care

As the city develops, it has had the ability to add more child care facilities. Recently a 2,322 square metre (25,000 square foot) community child care hub for children of all ages was built in North Richmond. Despite the efforts, Brodie said there is still more to be done.

Partnerships: food recovery project

This project includes 60 business partners offering not-for-profit redistribution of food while providing dignified access for people in need of food.

Partnerships: RCMP project

The “Hate has no place” initiative was created to address the increase in racial hate crimes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Economic development programs

The pandemic brought communication challenges, but technology helped to keep the city connected to people and businesses. A business resilience program was developed to support businesses, and a restaurant patio program was established and extended to spring 2022 to support the restaurant industry, with a study underway for a permanent program.

Shelters and homeless programs

The city has established several locations to support homeless people. Brighouse Pavilion provides those in need with showers and basic supplies. A winter program opened up community centres and two shelters at Ironwood and the old Minoru seniors centre. The city is developing a larger long-term facility plus two emergency shelters.

Lansdowne Centre

This 50-acre project will be developed in five phases and will include a 10-acre park.

Steveston Highway and Highway 99

The government is working to improve traffic flow on Highway 99. The proposal today is for an eight-lane tunnel with two overpasses over Highway 99.

Affordable housing

In every development of 60 or more units, the city has increased the share that must be low-end market rental from 10 per cent to 15 per cent.

Tourism, art and culture

Putting on events is not possible at the same level as in the past. The city continued its Doors Open Richmond program, which encourages people to discover places around the city that were previously unknown to them.

The Culture Days event received national recognition, and Richmond was named among the top 10 cities in Canada and top five cities of a similar size.

Social media

The Let’s Talk Richmond program allows the public to communicate with city staff and council through Zoom, letters, email and telephone. Let’s Talk Richmond allows for specific consultation and public input.

Planning and development

The people of Richmond have expressed a desire for more transportation choices including bike lanes, pedestrian walking areas and participation in a provincial pilot program for e-scooters. 

River Parkway

Before 2010 the city purchased the Railway Avenue right-of-way from Sea Island Way to Steveston Highway. One area was paved for bicycles, scooters, rollerblading and hiking. A second area from Gilbert Road to Cambie Road moved the traffic off River Road, providing more efficient movement of traffic. A third project is to develop a 40-acre park along the river, extending from Dinsmore Bridge halfway to Cambie Road with a completion date of 2024-2025.

Summary

The city undertook many initiatives and programs in 2021. Notwithstanding COVID-19, council has addressed the various needs of Richmondites. Richmond continues to grow as a city, and the plan for 25 years has always been to densify the City Centre area along the public transportation systems. The city is being proactive and looking forward to its plans for 2022.

To watch the video interview in full, go to richmondsentinel.ca/videos

Florence Gordon is a contributing writer to the Richmond Sentinel.