The new Vancouver city budget passed. Here’s why property taxes increased

Good morning,

A word of advice. If you’re going to miss work because of snow, the best spokesperson is a TransLink bus driver. Seriously, it doesn’t get much more convincing than that.

Today we’ve got an update on home sales in Vancouver, the best events to try this weekend and an update on the city budget.

— Geoff Sharpe

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WEATHER

Friday: 6 🌡️ 2 | 🌧/❄️

Saturday: 8 🌡️ 1 | 🌧

Sunday: 8 🌡️ 1 | ☁️

Monday: 7 🌡️ 1 | 🌧/❄️

VANCOUVER NUMBERS

🏠 0.25%: The current cost of property taxes compared to home values in Vancouver before the recent 10.7 percent property tax increase. This is the lowest in Canada. [Wealthsimple]

📱 $150 million: The cost to upgrade the 911 calling system, to allow for location tracking and texting. Experts say this will be a “game-changer” for public safety. [CBC]

CITY HALL

Final budget approved, tax hike passes

What happened: The city’s operating budget was approved by council with a 10.7 percent increase in property taxes.

• The budget passed unanimously with all council members supporting it. Coun. Christine Boyle voted against the increase to the Vancouver Police Department Budget, according to CBC.

The numbers: The 10.7 percent increase is the highest this century. But it’s still less than what renters will face and Vancouver still has one of the lowest property tax rates in the country.

• On average, it will cost a property owner $470 more per year and a condo owner an extra $150, according to CBC.

Look ahead: While Sim said the tax increase won’t “become the norm,” his previous campaign rhetoric was against tax increases, according to the Vancouver Sun. Councillours who joined his ABC team during the election, who were also opposed to tax increases during their time on council, ended up backing them.

• Thought-bubble: The city’s budget echoes the provincial government’s approach, with expansive spending, couched in messaging that years of underfunding requires large investments to fix infrastructure and social deficits. Anyone biking or driving on Vancouver’s roads would probably agree!

Why it matters: It shows Sim and his team are unafraid of pivoting from what they discussed during the campaign. The fears of a centre-right government slashing services to balance the budget did not play out

QUOTE

"The fact is we weren't taking care of our gardens, we had so many potholes. Our streets are not clean and our garbage is overflowing and our collection services were not what they should be.” ABC Coun. Klassen on the need to increase property taxes by 10.7 percent. [Yahoo News]

HOUSING

Housing sales up, prices up, affordability down

What happened: The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver released the number of home sales in February, according to CTV, which were up 76.9 percent compared to January, with a total of 1,808 homes sold.

• This is down 33 percent from the 10-year average for February. It’s also down 47 percent compared to the previous year.

What’s going on: Interest rates continue to affect the housing market and owners are reluctant to list their homes.

• The number of homes listed has increased, to 5.2 percent compared to January.

Unfortunately, there’s no sign of housing affordability improving. CBC reporter Justin McElroy noted that property prices in Greater Vancouver are once again above $2 million.

Zoom out: While prices are up again in Vancouver and B.C., prices are expected to drop 12 percent across the rest of Canada, according to Reuters. This is on top of the previous 15 percent decline from 2022.

Yes, but: Sadly housing affordability hasn’t really improved. During the pandemic, prices rose 50 percent, so this drop still hasn’t brought prices back down. Net affordability, according to BMO Capital Markets chief economist Douglas Porter in the Reuters story, has not improved at all.

• It gets worse: You won’t save much even if you rent. Experts expect rent to worsen in the next two years due to immigration and lack of supply, according to Reuters.

QUICK HITS

🏒 Another busy few days for the Canucks during the trade deadline. The team traded defenceman Luke Schenn to the Toronto Maple Leafs for a third-round draft pick. Overall, the team has traded Bo Horvat, Riley Stillman, Will Lockwood and Schenn for seven first four rounds of the 2023 Draft. [Vancouver is Awesome]

👎 The Canucks also picked up defenceman Filip Hronek and Detroit’s 2023 4th round pick for the 1st round draft pick that the team acquired in the Bo Horvat trade. The verdict? Not great! [TSN]

👮 Vancouver Police are asking for help to find 27-year-old Tamira Hansen. She was last seen boarding a bus to Vancouver in Horseshoe Bay. [CityNews]

💰 The provincial and federal governments have reached a healthcare deal. The agreement is worth $27.47 billion, with $3.3 billion over 10 years, with about $600 million a year in new money. [CityNews]

⚖️ Do not pass go, do not receive charges. The special prosecutor reviewing the massive money laundering probe that alleged an international gangster laundered millions through B.C. casinos has determined there should be no charges due to limited amounts of evidence. [Global News]

☕ Are they going steady? Mayor Sim and Prime Minister Trudeau went for what the media is calling a “coffee date.” Their coffee joint of choice? Pallet Coffee Roasters. [Global News]

🎓 B.C.’s public safety minister is calling on the University of British Columbia to investigate its policies after a student died trying to seek help. The boy made calls to 911 and there were delays in UBC staff accessing his room. [CityNews]

🚗 Should the cost of your traffic fine be tied to your income? It’s common in parts of Europe but not in North America. Council members in New Westminster passed a motion to support the policy and are looking to adopt it at the Union of B.C. Municipalities and then the provincial government. [Vancouver Sun]

CITY HALL

Living wage no longer alive: After an in-camera meeting, council decided to end the living wage policy that paid all employees and contractors a wage that met the basic needs of a family of four. The new policy will be tied to a five-year moving average instead of yearly and will pay on average $3 less. Based on online comments reported by Global, it appears ABC councillours were the ones who voted against it. [Global News]

Chinatown changes: The land near the Dunsmuir and Georgia viaducts may look a lot different soon. The developer of 456-496 Prior St., which is near the new St. Paul’s Hospital, submitted a proposal for a five-story office building and 303 rental homes.

Lawsuit funding rejected: A motion approved last year to fund $700,000 for a lawsuit to sue big oil to recover the costs of climate change was not included in this year’s budget. Coun. Carr’s amendment to add a smaller amount to the budget was voted down by 8-3 with ABC opposing it. [Urbanized]

FOOD

New Italian grocery store, a tasting menu worth trying and wine recommendations

Reviews

Vignette, 2650 Main Street: “Impressive” is how the tasting menu is described. The chef is from Bar Susu and St. Lawrence so you know it’s gonna be good. [Scout]

Northern Cafe, 1640 East Kent Ave Street: The beloved restaurant is getting the international treatment with a glowing review from The Guardian. The story gets into the details of the unique history and position of Chinese restaurants throughout Canada. [The Guardian]

Restaurant openings and closings

Takenaka, 1370 East Georgia Street: This Japanese food truck is opening up a cafe specializing in onigiri, those triangular steamed rice balls. [Daily Hive]

Mercato Di Luigi, 580 East 12th Avenue: A new Italian deli and grocery store is opening up, made by the same people as Ask for Luigi. [Scout]

Tall Shadow Bakery, 2472 E Hastings Street: Described as “a small bakery that specializes in sourdough bread,” they’re opening up a physical shop. [Vancouver is Awesome]

News you can use

Congrats to Kelcie Jones from This is Wine School and Burdock & Co. for winning best sommelier in B.C. [Scout]

Here are some recommendations on B.C. wine to try for this week. [Vancouver Sun]

EVENTS

Canada Sevens | BC Place | Friday-Sunday | Mens and women rugby with seven players. A fun time for everyone | Starting at $29.

Movie recommendations:

• Return to Seoul | VIFF | All weekend | A 25-year-old flys to South Korea to reconnect with the family who put her up for adoption | Tickets $15.

• Akira | RIO | Saturday, 11 pm | A singular anima masterpiece, a dystopian epic in post-apocalyptic Neo-Tokyo | Tickets $11.42.

LEGO Block Party | Vancouver Public Library | Saturday, 3 pm-4 pm | Come by and play with lego in a building bonanza | Free.

First Saturday at Pacific Arts Market | 1450 W Broadway | Saturday, 12 pm-5 pm | Meet artists and see their studios. Free.

Vancouver Cocktail Week | Various locations | Starting March 5 | Celebrate cocktail culture with events, drinks and bar takeovers | Various prices.

K Mart Korean Festival | Korean Community Centre | March 4 | Free to attend with food you need to try music and lots of entertainment, celebrating all things Korean | Free. 

Beer Poking | Shaketown Brewing | March 4, 5 pm onwards |A 40-year-old tradition where you dip a hot metal rod into beer to caramelize it. Yum! | Free.

COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHTS

• Bad news, there’s more snow and thunderstorms in the weather forecast. [Vancouver Is Awesome]

• A new location for the Chinese Canadian Museum has been selected at 51 East Pender Street, the site of the old Rennie Mesum. [Daily Hive]

• Evo is about to get a little more expensive. Check out their new pricing. [Reddit]

• Apparently there’s a mouse named Jerry who is now famous. [Vancouver is Awesome]

• Get out your biking shorts and fix those breaks because the Gastown Grand Prix is back this summer. [Daily Hive]

TWEET OF THE DAY

If you thought housing prices would become more affordable, you’d be wrong.

PHOTO OF THE DAY

It doesn’t get much prettier than this. Thanks to Reddit user oceannoodlessun for sharing this sunset at, well, Sunset Beach.

GAME TIME

Congrats to Louise who successfully guessed the VancouverGuesser on Wednesday was Locarno Beach.

Think you can guess today’s Wordle? Play now.