Miscommunications and urgency led to council misstep in benefit concert planning

What happened: This week, the planning of an event to honour people and communities impacted by the Lapu Lapu Festival tragedy on April 26 was complicated by miscommunications and urgency on the part of city councillors and the Mayor’s Office. 

Filipino BC, the group that organized the Lapu Lapu Day Festival, said the city didn’t notify them before the Mayor’s Office brought an urgent motion to secure a venue for “Come Together: Vancouver Strong,” a planned large-scale non-profit “memorial event” hosted at Rogers Arena. 

• “There is space and need for both intimate, community-led events and a broader large-scale tribute to encourage wider collective healing. However, the timing, tone and format of such an event should be aligned with victims and the communities impacted,” Filipino BC said in a statement on Tuesday night, after council had passed the motion. 

“We were not consulted on the content and specifics of the motion, which was for a memorial event and not a benefit concert. We heard from the community, including victims and families, that while they are in support of a benefit concert, the motion for a memorial event felt inappropriate and ill-advised. They also told us an event in June feels too soon,” Filipino BC chair RJ Aquino said in a further statement. 

An unfortunate miscommunication: Vancouver-Kensington MLA Mable Elmore explained there was a miscommunication, in part because the wording of the motion didn’t reflect that distinction between a memorial event and a benefit concert, according to CBC.

• Elmore is B.C.’s first and only MLA of Filipino descent and has been involved in the response to the tragedy.

“I would characterize it as a misunderstanding,” Elmore told CTV. In her own statement, Elmore emphasized that the “benefit concert is a welcome step towards healing,” while expressing her appreciation for Mayor Ken Sim’s “deep personal sympathy and outstanding leadership in the aftermath [of] the tragedy,” as well as the work by city councillors and staff. 

• The United Filipino Canadian Associations in BC, a coalition group, said they are “in full support of the upcoming benefit concert at Rogers Arena,” according to group president Christian Cunanan.

A reset at council: On Wednesday, city council pledged to “immediately and meaningfully” include the voices of families and communities affected by the tragedy in planning for the event and what it looks like. The motion also committed the city to prioritizing long-term recovery support for those affected, which was another request made in Filipino BC’s statement.

“This is about the community being centred in every decision we make,” Coun. Rebecca Bligh said on Wednesday. “It’s a community-centred moment, it’s not a council-centred moment, so what this says to me is we’re going to reset that,” Bligh added. 

When the original motion was brought to council as a matter of urgent business on Tuesday – meaning it wasn’t published ahead of time – OneCity Councillor Lucy Maloney did attempt to have the motion deferred until the following day in order “to touch base with community members and talk to them about this motion,” she said. 

Councillor Pete Fry noted council “had very little time to digest or understand the motion, if there are concerns,” Fry said, adding that “by delaying a decison by less than 24 hours I don’t think will make a material difference,” in event logistics.

• However, the deferral was defeated 6-4 with ABC councillors voting against Maloney’s request, citing their confidence in the community consultation that had already taken place.  

“I have confidence that folks have been engaged, including the local MLA [Mabel Elmore]. I’m comfortable, for that reason, voting on it today,” Kirby-Yung, who brought the motion on behalf of the Mayor’s Office, said. At the same time, Kirby-Yung said she couldn’t answer if the victims' families had been consulted. 

Neither Maloney or Kirby-Yung responded to Vancity Lookout’s request for comment on Thursday. 

Sim, who was absent from that portion of the meeting, said he was surprised by Filipino BC’s remarks. Sim described the motion as “administrative in nature” and said the urgency to move forward was that without it, “we did run the risk of losing the venue and maybe not being able to proceed with something in the future," he told CBC.

The motion allowed the city to enter into a no-fee contract with Canucks Entertainment Corporation for the use of Rogers Arena, and with Brand Live for production services, while allocating $50,000 in city funds to help cover production costs. 

• There will also be a “nominal ticket fee,” to cover “unavoidable hard costs” of the event, according to Tuesday’s motion.  

When reached for comment, the Mayor’s Office said they would be applying council’s updated direction to undertake additional consultation with victims and families moving forward, and are still finalizing the details of the event, which will be a not-for-profit benefit.

What it means: There are underlying themes around the ABC party’s governance style that came into play here, particularly around bringing motions and amendments to council without forewarning and a chance for public input. 

Whether it’s the attempts to remove the park board, the renters office, the Integrity Commissioner, a gas heating ban, or a police task force on the Downtown Eastside, it’s the process of making changes and proposals quickly, with few details or transparency, that can cause concern, regardless of the merits of what’s being put forward. While the intent might be good, a unilateral approach, or the perception of such, can be counterproductive and create opposition or conflict. 

In this case, there was a balancing act of expediency and trust on a sensitive issue, and the Mayor’s Office and majority party didn’t quite get it right. That doesn’t diminish the work they’ve clearly done in responding to this tragedy, but it does serve as a general reminder that slowing down and building consent makes things smoother in the long run.

As MLA Elmore said, “The road towards healing is not meant to be walked alone. Let’s all come together hand in hand in this path of becoming whole again.”