Two Tri-City mayors were among the local leaders asking B.C.'s political parties to weigh in on key regional issues Wednesday.
Port Coquitlam's Greg Moore and Port Moody's Mike Clay said parties seeking election May 9 must pay attention to affordable housing, transit and the environment — and voters should pay attention to the responses.
Seven questions have been sent to the BC Liberals, BC NDP, BC Conservatives and the Green Party of BC with a response deadline of March 31. The answers will be posted on a new website (localgovernmentmatters.com) in the weeks leading up to the provincial election.
Moore, who is the Metro Vancouver board chair, said provincial funding is needed for phase two of a transportation plan that would pay for more B-lines, HandyDart services, SkyTrain cars and station upgrades, the Pattullo Bridge replacement, and the Surrey and Vancouver SkyTrain extensions, as well as road, walking and cycling improvements.
Meanwhile, Clay, who chairs the region's affordable housing committee, said the province needs 5,500 rental units annually to meet demand and other help is needed at the lower end of the market.
"We're hoping the provincial government and parties running for government are sharing our concern and putting together solid platforms to address this," Clay said, noting that municipalities are already "stepping up as best we can."
"We can't do it alone and that's why we're here today," Clay said. "We're looking for this partnership."
On the environmental front, Metro Vancouver is looking for mattresses and furniture to be added to the province's product stewardship program — which already pays for collection and disposal of tires, batteries, beverage containers and consumer electronics, among other things.
Moore said the lack of stewardship on these items means people are just dumping them on side roads and in alleys, leaving it up to the municipalities to deal with the cost of disposal.
(Mattresses have been banned from the Coquitlam transfer station and now cost $15 to recycle per piece or $30 for a mattress and box spring).
MetroVancouver would like each party to commit to expanding the extended producer responsibility program to include large household items by 2018.
"These products are potentially a public hazard and there are significant disposal costs," Moore said.
According to Metro Vancouver, while municipal governments own more than 60% of the country's infrastructure, they collect just eight cents of every tax dollar paid in Canada. The other 92 cents go to federal, provincial and territorial governments.
And while MetroVancouver will not be endorsing any political party, it will make the parties' responses, as well as more information about this issues, available at localgovernmentmatters.com.