Month: February 2016

News 1130

Construction could begin as soon as next week on a jet fuel facility on Port Metro Vancouver land just outside Richmond.

The location, on the south arm of the Fraser near the Riverport entertainment complex, is a major issue for Richmond Mayor Malcolm Brodie, and he says he’ll continue to push the federal government to intervene despite this permit issued by Port Metro Vancouver.

“When you talk about the tank farm, we have many concerns,” says Brodie. “These are very large structures on the corner of the Port property.”

Brodie supports the construction of a facility, but says he’d like to see it built closer to the airport.

“We have made our comments and concerns known to the federal government at all times,” says Brodie. “We’re hoping for some kind of a federal response to it.” …

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Richmond News

A bridge to replace the aging George Massey Tunnel is scheduled to open in 2022, but is the 10-lane $3.5-billion structure being built to move traffic and goods across the Fraser River or along it?

That’s a question that’s gaining traction these days as critics of the bridge plan, and the subsequent removal of the tunnel, are wondering whether the provincial project has more to do with ships than cars and whether it ignores broader concerns about the environment. …

But Mayor Malcolm Brodie has repeatedly raised concerns about the bridge simply moving northbound congestion from Delta to Richmond, during the morning rush hour.

According to the province’s 2006 Gateway Program Definition Report: “To capture significant benefits, twinning the tunnel would also require improvements to other crossings over the North Arm of the Fraser River, such as the Oak Street and Knight Street bridges, or a new crossing”. …

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Coast Reporter

The Canadian Women’s National Volleyball Team has announced it will be moving its training centre from Winnipeg to Richmond next January. …

“We are thrilled to welcome the women’s national volleyball team to the City of Richmond and the Richmond Olympic Oval,” Richmond Mayor Malcolm Brodie said. “The Oval is already a training centre for many Canadian Olympic and Paralympic athletes, and this will continue to build on its status as a world-class centre for high performance sport.” …

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Richmond News

On Saturday, Feb. 20, at the Gulf of Georgia Cannery, the cast and crew of Once Upon a Time will celebrate its 100th episode at an invite-only party.

However, fans will be able to get a peek at the stars of the show as they venture down a red carpet into the venue at around 6:30 p.m. …

“…Once Upon A Time has been a great addition to Richmond. Its filming attracts local fans, as well as those from around the world to Steveston Village, enhancing its reputation as a regional tourist destination,” said Mayor Malcolm Brodie.

“The series has also contributed to a significant increase in filming activity in Richmond, which brings social and economic benefits to the community — creating hundreds of well-paying jobs for our residents and millions in economic outcomes.” …

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Richmond News

The City of Richmond and the Richmond School District are urging everyone who lives, works or plays in the city to don something pink on Wednesday, Feb. 24.

To symbolize their intolerance of bullying, the city and school district are once again partnering to recognize the date as “ERASE Bullying Day” to raise awareness about the issue of bullying. …

“Bullying is a troublesome issue, negatively affecting the lives of people of all ages,” said Mayor Malcolm Brodie.

“Here in Richmond we celebrate collaboration and diversity and believe we can erase bullying if we work together.” …

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CBC News

Metro Vancouver staff are asking for more time to review plans for the proposed bridge to replace the Massey Tunnel.

In December the province announced it would replace the ageing tunnel with a 10-lane toll bridge — a plan criticized by some of the area’s mayors.

“There are many aspects to the bridge proposal,” said Richmond Mayor Malcolm Brodie. “We’re unaware of what’s really happening, so we want more information.” …

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News 1130

The City of Richmond kicks off a series of open houses tonight as it looks into the idea of forming its own police department.

Mayor Malcolm Brodie say people would have to get on board in pretty big numbers for the idea to really gain traction and he adds the five open houses this month should help determine that level of support.

“What I would want to see from the people, before I would want to make a move to an independent police force, would be that there’s a very good level of public support, notwithstanding the very considerable costs that are involved in making a transition.”

Brodie says the city has carefully looked at the idea, but it’s hard to put an exact price tag on it, but he does have a rough estimate.

“There would be one-time costs of about $19.6 million which would have to be paid over a period of three years. In addition to that, there would be a $2.4 million bump to the operating budget and that’s to get the same level of service. So it’s a very costly item.” …

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Richmond News

Despite concerns about the tunnel, the City of Richmond is hoping to cash in on some of the $6 million of bike-lane funding.

The money could be used to help connect existing bike lanes to one another.

BikeBC has already helped fund the soon-to-be-completed crosstown neighbourhood bike route.

“When completed, this pathway will provide a very important east-west route for cyclists to move efficiently across the city while avoiding traffic on major arterials,” said Richmond Mayor Malcolm Brodie.

The route, which avoids cycling on main arterial roads (although one must cross them), will be completed by the summer of 2017.

Brodie said by 2041,10 per cent of all commutes would be by bicycle. …

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Vancity Buzz

The City of Richmond is hosting the first of a series of open houses tonight to gather public opinion on whether or not to give the RCMP the boot.

Richmond mayor Malcolm Brodie said the City was “forced” to sign a renewal contract with the RCMP and felt certain aspects of it were unfair and incomplete.

“We’ve been looking at the police model since that time,” Brodie told Vancity Buzz.

One of the main issues, according to Brodie, is that the RCMP is governed by a police board in Ottawa, and he questions whether Richmond would be better off being governed locally with a municipal police board.

“The issues with the RCMP relate to issues of accounting and transparency and local control and finances – those kinds of issues, as opposed to policing on the street,” he said. …

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Richmond News

Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Todd Stone was in Richmond Friday morning to meet with the city’s mayor, Malcolm Brodie, to discuss an important transportation issue.

Bike lanes.

Stone made the Railway Greenway in West Richmond his pit-stop to announce the province will match up to $6 million in municipal contributions across the province on cycling-specific projects.

“Applications for this year’s BikeBC funding are now open,” said Stone, who praised Richmond’s Railway initiative in front of Brodie.

Stone added that his ministry would establish a formal cycling working group for the George Massey Tunnel replacement bridge, to ensure cycling lanes are connected to Richmond’s existing network of roads.

This was Brodie and Stone’s first face-to-face meeting in public, after Brodie told the News he was not invited to attend the announcement of the proposed $3.5 billion bridge at the George Massey Tunnel crossing. …

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