Budget 2025: Why Vancouver appears locked in on more police funding

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Good morning, 

Nate with you today, tagging in for our prolific leader Geoff. It’s been quite some time since I’ve done a full newsletter, so bear with me as I get back in the flow here. Over the fall I’ve been busy dog-dading, travelling, and spending time with friends and family. 

I’ve also been working hard on in-depth local stories, which you may have read in the weekly newsletter or our weekend Insider edition for subscribers. Focusing on long-form journalism for the Lookout has given me an opportunity to connect with a variety of Vancouverites, learning about what’s important to you all and trying to find some answers along the way. 

We’re always open to conversation and suggestions here at the Lookout, so if you’ve got a tip, a lead, a story idea for a future article, or just something you want to share with us, drop me a line at [email protected]. 

With that, let’s get in today’s newsletter!

— Nate Lewis, Vancity Lookout

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WEATHER

Wednesday: 7 🌡️ 3 | 🌤️

Thursday: 8 🌡️ 5 | 🌤️

Friday: 8 🌡️ 6 | 🌧️

CITY HALL

Budget 2025: Why Vancouver appears locked in on more police funding 

Geoff did an overview of the city’s 2025 draft budget last week, including a targeted 5.5% property tax increase. Today, we’re going to look specifically at a big-ticket budget item: policing. 

What happened: On Tuesday, city council received a comprehensive report on Vancouver’s 2025 budget. The $2.4 billion operating budget includes funding for all the services that allow a big city to operate. 

• That includes over $450 million, or 19%, for the Vancouver Police Department’s (VPD) operations. It’s the second-biggest budget item for the city behind utilities. 

The city’s budget for policing has increased over $100 million, or roughly 28%, since 2021. For context, the city’s overall operating budget including policing costs has increased by about $800 million, or roughly 40%, between 2021 and 2025. 

Broader context: In Tuesday’s presentation, City Manager Paul Mochrie emphasized how every city department worked hard to reduce non-essential and non-urgent spending in this year’s budget after city council asked for the property tax increase to be kept at or below 5.5%. 

• That property tax increase includes 1% specifically targeted to fund the renewal of aging infrastructure. 

Police budget increase: However, the Vancouver Police Board requested a $12.7 million increase in funding from what was proposed in the 2025 draft budget. That’s on top of an additional $10 million increase compared to the VPD’s 2024 budget. 

• About $6 million would go toward funding a permanent body-worn camera program, which the VPD piloted in 2024. The goal of the program is to “strengthen public safety, enhance transparency, trust, and accountability in interactions between the police and the public,” according to the VPD. However, one expert said studies haven’t found body cams decrease excessive use of force or civilian complaints against officers, according to CTV.  

ABC councillor Sarah Kirby-Yung expressed frustration over “fully funding” the VPD, only to have them continually come back with requests for budget increases year after year.  “How do we get out of this cycle?” Kirby-Yung, whose husband Terry is a former senior VPD officer, asked. 

In response, Vancouver Police Chief Adam Palmer had a few suggestions to create more cost certainty, all of which would have to come from the province and are beyond the jurisdiction of city council. Those ideas included having the province institute mandatory, or involuntary, care for people with serious mental health and/or substance use problems, getting the province to provide money to police protests, and having the province subsidize the cost of training recruits. 

Specifically on the costs of policing protests, Palmer called Vancouver the “epicentre for protests in the entire region,” and said the VPD are taking on an “extraordinary burden.” Palmer also told the police board that if an additional $300,000 for protests was not added to the police budget, “I’m still going to spend it anyways,” Palmer said, according to VIA. 

• If city council decided not to fund the police budget, in part or whole, the Director of Police Services (DPS) – an appointed position in the provincial Ministry of Public Safety – would have the final say in determining police funding under the Police Act. For example, when council tried to freeze the 2021 police budget, the police board successfully appealed to the DPS to have the funding restored, according to Pivot Legal.  

About 12% of residents and 11% of businesses surveyed by the city said they’d like to see the police budget decreased. 

Crime numbers: Statistics on crime should always be taken with a few grains of salt, however they can provide some indication of big picture trends. Rates of overall crime, violent crime, and property crime have all decreased thus far in 2024, lower than last year and 2020, with overall calls for police service being slightly lower this year. Stats that attempt to quantify the severity of crimes indicate crime in 2024 has been significantly less severe, particularly the severity of violent crimes, which spiked in 2022.   

While the data suggests crime is down this year, there’s not a clear trend year over year with fluctuating crime rates and severity. In contrast, the VPD’s budget has increased between $23 and $40 million each year since 2021. 

• Of course, there are a constellation of economic and social factors that influence the amount of crime in the city, but there isn’t a clear line between more policing and police resources and a safer city with less crime. 

The further increase to police funding in Vancouver is a “sizable but failing investment into a system that does not address the root causes of safety concerns,” one of the public speakers, who lives in the Downtown Eastside, told council on Tuesday. 

Police board turmoil: The Vancouver police board, an independent appointed board that oversees the VPD, including making budget requests on behalf of the police, has seen a steady drip of resignations since 2023. 

Police board member Rachel Roy resigned in June 2023, according to Global, over the manner in which the board reinstated the school liaison officer program, which the board apologized for more than a year later. In January, vice-chair Faye Wightman resigned, saying the objectivity of the board was being compromised by the mayor’s office, according to the Vancouver Sun.

• Mayor Ken Sim chairs the police board, but provincial changes to the Police Act – which came a few months after Wightman’s comments – mean mayors are no longer automatically appointed to chair their local police board. 

Last month, vice-chair Comfort Sakoma-Fadugba resigned from the police board after posts she made on social media that “do not reflect the values of the board” became public, according to board chair Frank Chong and the CBC. 

What’s next: City council will vote on the budget next week, and will in all likelihood approve the requested police budget increases.

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VANCOUVER NUMBERS

⚽ $25 million: The estimated park board budget for two FIFA 2026 training sites in South Van. If you want to know more, I recently did a deep dive into the contentious situation at one of these parks. [Park board, Vancity Lookout]

🤕 8: The number of weeks Filip Hronek, one of the Vancouver Canucks’ top defenders, is expected to miss after undergoing successful surgery for an undisclosed injury. His absence will mean Quinn Hughes – their superstar defender who Hronek usually pairs with – will see his already ample ice time increase. [Sportsnet]

📈 $16.3 million: The Vancouver Police Department and Fire Rescue Services (VFRS) are this much over budget for 2024. A city staff report notes one of the main overage costs on the VFRS side is overtime for firefighters to fill in for their sick or injured colleagues, including increasing mental health claims. VFRS’s extra costs account for $5.1 million. [City of Vancouver]

THE AGENDA

🏦 The Vancouver Art Gallery (VAG) has cancelled the current design of their new purpose-built gallery, announcing they’ve parted ways with the architecture firm that had been working on the project for more than 10 years. The new site, at West Georgia and Cambie Street, is already partially excavated, but construction was halted in August after expected costs increased 50% to $600 million. Now, the VAG, which has already raised $340 million of the initial $400 million cost, will go back to the easel. [Urbanized] 

💃 The finale of the biggest concert series in the world lands in Vancouver, with Taylor Swift and her fans expected to dominate the downtown core this weekend. Approximately 70% of ticket holders are coming from outside the Lower Mainland, according to VIA. If you don’t have a ticket the city is strongly suggesting you stay away from BC Place this weekend. There will also be various road closures around the stadium between noon and midnight for all three concert days. [VIA, City of Vancouver]  

👭 Police are on the lookout for two children, aged seven and 10, who didn’t return to class at Strathcona Elementary School after lunch on Tuesday. The girls were seen around the neighbourhood and at International Village, however they hadn’t been located as of 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday night. [CTV]

Outside Vancouver

🪦 The public is welcome to attend a provincial state memorial service for former premier John Horgan that will be held near Langford, Horgan’s home community, on December 15. Horgan died November 12 after several bouts with cancer. [CBC] 

📬 A point of tension in the ongoing labour dispute between Canada Post and postal workers is the creation of flexible part-time positions for mail sorters, while full-time employees, rather than sorting and delivering mail, would do delivery only. It creates a two-tier system, according to the union, and seems to mimic some of the efficiency practices of CP’s competitors, delivery giants like Amazon and Walmart. [Canadaland]

DREAM HOME

Overlooking the popular Union/Adanac bike route, this lil’ guy has seen better days. Still, at nearly 124 years old it’s a slice of Strathcona style that seems worth preservation. If you’re looking for a home with lots of character and don’t mind putting in a big lift on renos, this could be quite a spot.

But as usual in this city, the sticker price almost entirely reflects the assessed land value, rather than the building itself.

ARTS GUIDE

Eras Tour | BC Place | Dec. 6-8, 7pm | Taylor Swift wraps up her mega tour with three sold out performances in Vancouver | Tickets 🤷🏼‍♀️  

Dolly Parton’s Smoky Mountain Christmas Carol | Stanley Theatre | Dec. 4-24 | A mash up of Charles Dickens’ famous novella and Parton’s timeless music and lyrics will spirit you all the way to Christmas eve | Tickets 39+

The Anonymous Art Show | Cityscape Community ArtSpace (North Van) | Dec. 4-15, Wednesday to Saturday, 11 am-5pm | Get a unique piece of art from a local anonymous artist for $100. Sales offered in person and online. Artists revealed after purchase 😉 | More info 

East Van Panto Robin Hood | York Theatre | Dec. 4-Jan. 5, 2pm or 7pm | Trout Lake and other Vancouver parks have been privatized by Prince Ken, so Robin and friends go on a grand adventure to “retrieve the keys to the city’s public amenities,” in this pointed, timely romp | Tickets $29+ 

Music for the Winter Solstice | Heritage Hall (Main Street) | Dec. 11-12, 7 pm | When the rain is constant and darkness comes too early, Music on Main brings light, transforming the gloom of the season into a celebration | Tickets 25+

Cirque du Soleil | Concord Pacific | Wednesday-Sunday, various times | It’s the final two weeks of ECHO, this year’s Cirque show under the blue and white tent | Tickets $68+

The Hobbit | Pacific Theatre | Dec. 4-21, various showtimes | Tolkien’s beloved tale is brought to the stage in the world premiere of this two-person show | Tickets $40

Christmas with Chor Leoni | St. Andrew’s-Wesley United Church | December 19-21, various showtimes | Let the voices of Chor Leoni bring you joy and light this holiday season at one of Vancouver’s favourite seasonal offerings | Tickets $20+

VANCOUVER GUESSER

COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHTS

• This may come as a surprise, but it’s not elves who string up millions of lights in Stanley Park every year. [The West End Journal]

• If you’re one of the lucky few locals to score Eras tickets, you’ll definitely want to avoid driving on concert night… [CTV]

• But for those out-of-town Swifties who couldn’t find accommodation, a car may be their best bet. [VIA]

• After thirty-plus years of supporting artists and those living with HIV/AIDS in Vancouver, a charitable volunteer-driven organization is shutting down. [Georgia Straight]

PHOTO OF THE DAY

A Redditor got some epic pictures of the skyline amidst the morning fog. But how’d they get these glorious shots, commenters inquired. “Can caw-firm. I am bird,” OP crowed.