Silent Night

It seems strange to me that I haven't had much to blog about since the election on November 15. The new Board was inaugurated on the 1st of December and yet since then the Board has not met openly. A meeting was scheduled for the 7th of December but the new Chair John Coupar unilaterally cancelled it. Nothing to do perhaps? The first scheduled meeting for the new year is January 19th. At this point no agenda has been posted and so we don't know yet what the new priorities will be.

I know my priority is the a new Joint Operating Agreement with all the Community Centre Associations. I hope this is the priority of this new Board too. Community Centre Associations have been a partner with the Park Board for more than 50 years. This partnership has made Vancouver's Community Centres the envy of many jurisdictions. It is this partnership that has made our Centres relevant and necessary parts of our communities. The priorities of the local associations ensure that they reflect the values and needs of each community. What works in Strathcona or Sunset works because the associations reflect the needs and values of their neighbourhoods. A one-size fits all doesn't work in Vancouver because not every neighbourhood is the same. A set of core city-wide services must be a part of our system, but individual needs must be able to be met within each Centre.

Another priority of these first few months must be putting the Park Board in line with the waste management program that as of January 1st will be city-wide. This means that organic waste will be separated and composted. This is necessary for benefit of both the environment and the taxpayers who pay for waste disposal. The Park Board should be the leader in education on waste diversion with a leading zero-waste program. Since its inception, the Park Board has been the leader in green initiatives; it should be now too.

Planning for the future means planning for now as well. We must start planning not just for the next 4 years but for the next 4 seasons. Our parks and gardens have been neglected over the past 6 years and repairing them must be near the top of the list of priorities. Winter is the time for preparing our parks, gardens, and playing fields for the busy seasons of spring and summer. The priorities for our outside workers must be in preparing for the return of both passive and active park usage. Work now means better parks and recreation later.

As we head into a new year it is time we got down to work. Let's role up our sleeves and start on the long road to once again making better parks for Vancouver.

Some reflections on the election

After a frantic couple of months I am starting to catch my breathe and come to a bit of understanding of what the results of last Saturday mean. I am incredibly humbled and grateful to the voters of Vancouver for their trust. I made some promises which I intend to keep. Respectful negotiations with Community Centre Associations; meaningful consultation with the public, especially around dogs in parks; working to replace the outdoor swimming pool in Mt. Pleasant; work toward a plebiscite on cetaceans in captivity; and maintaining our parks and gardens.

This campaign was different in that I had a running mate (not since 2005 have the Greens run more than one candidate at Parks), and a campaign team. I am so grateful for all the hard work of the volunteers. It made the campaign a lot easier and a lot more fun.

It was different too in that we had some really great independents running. Not only the hard-working and dedicated Jamie Lee Hamilton (actually not an independent, she ran under the IDEA banner), but others like Jenny DiCastris and James Buckshon. It is a shame that party politics have such a stranglehold on Vancouver politics, as these voices were not heard well above the din of the machines lubricated with millions of dollars from developers and other deep pocketed players.

This race was a lot more personal too. Not in a negative way, but in that I was much better known this time around, and people made an effort to tell me they were supporting me and the Green team. Our support came from a very diverse and wide circle. The Green message of openness, collaboration, and working for the common good, resonated in the electorate.

With being elected I will have to step away from my position of Governor of the VanDusen Botanical Gardens, a position I greatly enjoyed. My promise to them is to continue to advocate for all of our parks and gardens and ensure VanDusen continues to be a world-class destination and research garden.

There is much to do over the next four years. We must regain the trust of the public. We must not only do good, but be seen to do good. We must be vigilant against complacency. We must be open, honest, and accessible.

The Vancouver Green's made history. We have elected the largest group of Green members to any government in Canada ever. Two elected to the Park Board is a new milestone, being elected to all three levels of civic government is a new record. We are all grateful to the citizens and know it is an honour and privilege to serve.

Once again, I will take Glissando Remmy's wise words as my creed: ‘I’ll do the best I can, with the resources at hand, for all the people of Vancouver. Period.’

Better Parks are coming (back) to Vancouver

"Thank you Vancouver for electing me to the Board of Parks and Recreation. An awesome responsibility that I accept with humility and gratitude. Vancouver's natural beauty is worth protecting. Neighbourhood services are worth preserving. And you agreed"

That quote was from 2008 when I was first elected to the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation.  It still pretty well sums up my feelings this time. Only things are bit different now. Now there are two Green's on the Park Board. My running-mate, Michael Wiebe and I were both elected. This is tremendous as now I will have a partner in this endeavour. It is unfortunate that we are once again facing a majority Board--last time it was Vision Vancouver, this time it is the NPA--which could mean more of the same, but I am optimistic. Optimistic that the NPA majority will be collaborative and not simply wield their majority as though no one else matters. The proof of that may come sooner rather than later.

Already the newly elected NPA have said they will rescind the cetacean breeding ban. How they do this may set the tone for the next four years. Will they simply bring in a motion and use their majority to pass it, or will they set up a collaborative process to examine the decision in more detail. I am hoping for the latter. I sat for three years with a Vision dominated Board who viewed the round table not as a metaphor for collaborative decision-making but as a wheel for crushing anyone who dared to disagree with them.

Regardless of the tone the NPA sets, Michael and I will be there to advocate for natural spaces, parks as parks, collaborative approaches, community consultation, and real Green ideals.We will be part of a larger Green caucus in Vancouver that joins City Councillor Adriane Carr and School Trustee Janet Fraser. We won't be making decisions in secret but will support each other as we face the difficult tasks of managing a city, collaborating on ideas to bring forth, and bringing the public back into the decision making process.

Thank you for giving me another chance to serve my community. Thank you for believing in better parks for Vancouver.

Mackinnon hopeful as voting nears end

Green veteran vies for comeback to park board and breakthrough for his party

Sandra Thomas / Vancouver Courier

November 15, 2014 08:39 PM

 Green park board candidate Stuart Mackinnon relaxes at home with his furry friend as he waits for election results. Photograph By Sandra Thomas

Two hours before the polls closed on the Nov. 15 civic election, Green Party park board candidate Stuart Mackinnon was relaxing at home listening to classical music by Gabriel Urbain Fauré in his small East Side condominium.

"It helps calm me," Mackinnon said.

It must work because, at least by appearance, the high school teacher showed no signs of nerves as the final minutes of this election season wind down. Surrounded by dozens of books, paintings and photographs of Vancouver, more CDs than a thrift store and accompanied by his faithful companion Kiku, the small shiba inu he rescued 11 years ago, Mackinnon was hopeful the Green party will make history tonight by winning numerous seats at council, school board and of course park board. Mackinnon was elected to the park board in 2008, but lost in 2011 placing 12th in the seven seat race with 44,000 votes.

Mackinnon said due to the ongoing dispute between the park board and community centre associations over their joint-operating agreements, more residents than ever are paying attention to this election, which could be one of the reasons for the huge turnout for advanced voting and even on election day.

"These are their communities," said Mackinnon. "While a lot of them don't quite understand all of the nuances of the joint operating agreements, they do recognize there's been a grab for money and power. That they understand."

There are 30 candidates seeking a seat on the park board including independents Roland Clarke, James Buckshon, Jenny De Castris, Eleanor Hadley, Matt Kadioglu and Earl Sunshine. Running for Vision Vancouver are Catherine Evans, Brent Granby, Naveen Girn, incumbent Trevor Loke, Sammie Jo Rumbaua and Coree Tull. NPA candidates include incumbent John Coupar, Casey Crawford, Jay Jagpal, Sarah Kirby-Yung, Stephane Mouttet, Erin Shum. Running for COPE is Ezra Bloom, Urooba Jamal, Imtiaz Popat, former park board commissioner Anita Romaniuk and Cease Wyss. Vancouver 1st candidates include Brent Hayden, Yogi Johl, Massimo Rossetti, Doug Starink and Richard Wong. Meanwhile Jamie Lee Hamilton is running for IDEA. Joining Mackinnon for the Green Party is Michael Wiebe.

sthomas@vancourier.com

twitter.com/sthomas10

(c) 2014 VanCourier

Vote with your heart and your head

“Remember something, if you will, about voting: Voting is not a horse race, you're not going there thinking "Gee, I gotta pick the winner so I can brag to my friends 'Oh, I picked so-and-so and he or she won'". Voting is voting your heart and voting your conscience and when you've done that, don't ever, EVER let [anyone] tell you that you've wasted your vote because the fact is, if you DON'T vote your heart and conscience then you HAVE wasted your vote.”
― Jesse Ventura

In the quote above, Jesse Ventura was referring to the American electorate and the two party Democratic/Republican system. But it can easily be translated to Vancouver and the 2 party system we have had here over the last 60+ years. In this election we are lucky to have a real choice as the 2 developer-backed parties are being challenged by smaller parties not beholden to any monied backers.

I'm proud to be one of those challenging the status quo. I'm proud to be running on a team with 7 great candidates. In this election the Green Party of Vancouver offers a real alternative. No matter where you put your Xs in Saturday's vote I hope you will consider voting for a mixed Council, School Board and Park Board. And I hope that mix includes 7 Green candidates.

Cleta Brown, Adriane Carr, and Pete Fry for City Council. Janet Fraser and Mischa Oak for School Board. And Michael Wiebe and me, Stuart Mackinnon for Park Board. Candidates that believe in people centred planning. People who believe in consultation. People who believe in independent thought.

Whatever your choice, vote with your heart and your head. There is no split vote; there is no wasted vote--except if you choose not to vote. That would be a waste.

Dogs Dogs Dogs

By far the most e-mail I received as both a Commissioner (from 2008-2011) and as a candidate (past and present) is about dogs. This is also the hottest button issue at the Park Board and has been for some years. Mostly it is advocates of off-leash areas who write, but occasionally I receive mail from people who think there are too many dogs in the city.

Here is my response to the Dog Owners Group (DOG Vancouver) and also what I send out to people who write:

As a dog owner for most of my life, including presently (I have a 13 year old Shiba Inu named Kiku) I know the importance of space for dogs to run about. I also know that dog ownership comes with responsibilities. One of those responsibilities is to not interfere with the peaceful enjoyment of others, both at home and in public. Off-leash dogs has been the biggest issue at the Park Board for more than 20 years. The Park Board has not been able to find a solution, so best practice would suggest that we look at other jurisdictions and see what has been successful.

Calgary is the closest Canadian city of comparable size and they have had a very successful policy for some time now. Calgary has a comprehensive dog off leash program which includes:

·         lots of parks and amenities;

·         real engagement with dog owners as stakeholders and park stewards and self-policing;

·         programming and outreach to encourage responsible ownership and engaging the community;

·         school outreach programs to teach kids about safe dog interaction;

·         partnerships with private sector to provide amenities (like stations and poo-bags courtesy of pet

      stores);

But it also has:

·         zero tolerance enforcement;

·         high licensing compliance rate;

·         completely self-financed animal control (ours needs to be subsidized because of licensing

       non-compliance);

·          

I think Vancouver could model our policies after Calgary’s as they have been very successful.  I look forward to hearing from the public on this issue. I will hear all input and perspectives with an open mind (setting my dog owner's hat aside), first as a candidate and, if elected, as a Commissioner. As a Park Board Commissioner from 2008-2011 the one thing I learned is that it is very hard to please everyone and accommodate every need. The best anyone can do is to welcome all input and work with all those concerned to come up with reasonable solutions that satisfy the vast majority of people.

MEDIA RELEASE: Green Park Board candidates call for time out in community centre association negotiations

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 24, 2014 

 Both sides need to reboot with new ideas for agreements 

After dozens of meetings and thousands of hours invested, and still no agreement in sight, everyone needs to cool off and take a time-out in negotiations between the City of Vancouver’s Board of Parks and Recreation and local Community Centre Associations for new Joint Operating Agreements (JOAs), say Green Party of Vancouver Park Board candidates.

“It’s time to pause and reboot,” says Green Park Board candidate Stuart Mackinnon, a Park Commissioner in 2010, when the process began after the Park Board started revisiting JOAs that are more than 40 years old.

"The atmosphere has been toxic from the start with mistrust from the CCAs and entrenched positions from the Park Board. The mistrust is understandable — you can't negotiate with someone who says it’s my way or the highway.

“There’s so much tension, negativity and animosity in the air that everybody just needs to take a breather then start again on better footing with a new Park Board.”

Mackinnon is calling for a halt in the talks, including the City’s threat that the CCAs will be “thrown out of their community centres.”

“With the election we have a natural opportunity to cool off, maintain the status quo and then resume negotiations in better faith with new park commissioners and new ideas at the table after November 15,” he adds.

Alternatives to sharing revenues do exist, says Mackinnon. For instance, CCAs could pay a fee for the facilities and utilities they use, with smaller centres paying less and larger ones more. The funds gathered could be used to offset disparities in programming across the city.

Another approach, similar to one used in some school districts to equalize the diversity of income in various neighbourhoods, would see the Park Board taking a percentage of all revenues after expenses generated by CCAs that would be put into a fund to be shared equitably across the system for programming.

“The kind of centralization we’re seeing with the proposed JOAs is only part of what’s been plaguing our city lately — the dismantling of local neighbourhood initiatives or values with little or poor consultation with the people most affected,” says Michael Wiebe, also running for Park Board for GPV.

“The community knows what services and programming works best in their neighbourhood so they have to be equal leaders in this.”

The six CCAs involved in the current lawsuit are Killarney, Kensington, Kerrisdale, Hastings, Sunset, and Riley Park Hillcrest.   

-30- 

Media contacts:
Stuart Mackinnon, Green Park Board candidate:778-389-1956
betterparks@gmail.com
Michael Wiebe, Green Park Board candidate:(604) 616-1220
becascadian@gmail.com
Glenda Bartosh, Media Liaison:604-669-3669
gbartosh@telus.net

Wishing everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving. Hoping for a world of peace and harmony

On Thursday, January 31, 1957, the Parliament of Canada proclaimed: A Day of General Thanksgiving to Almighty God for the bountiful harvest with which Canada has been blessed – to be observed on the 2nd Monday in October.

Stuart Mackinnon: Better parks, together

by Stuart Mackinnon on Oct 6, 2014 at 2:28 pm Straight.com

Stuart Mackinnon is a Green candidate for the Vancouver park board.

 
Vancouver parks and recreation facilities have been neglected and need to be made a priority again. Fields, gardens, natural spaces, and community centres are deteriorating and yet little or no money is being spent for their care and upkeep. It doesn’t have to be this way. Vancouver can be a beautiful, vital, and active city again if the priorities of the park board are focused on parks and recreation.

People and community groups have been marginalized over the past six years. Citizens feel left out and disrespected. It’s time for change. Change includes putting community centres back where they belong—at the centre of our neighbourhoods—by giving them the independence to make planning decisions that reflect community needs and values. Change means listening to people, not belittling them. We need to clearly define decision-making processes and roles to better include the community.

We need to find new ways to engage the citizenry to make consultation more open and meaningful.
Vancouver is changing and the park board has to change, too. Since parks have become the backyards for many people, they should be maintained to enhance and enliven everyone’s urban experience with flower gardens, playing fields, and natural spaces.

The Green Party of Vancouver has a plan to make better parks and recreation for Vancouver. This plan includes working with the citizens of Vancouver. When the park board works with the community, our neighbourhoods become more livable. When the city works with the park board, Vancouver becomes a better place to live.

Working with Green city councillors, park board commissioners and school trustees we can build a better Vancouver, together. On November 15 vote for a better city. Vote Green first.

Stuart Mackinnon is a Green Party of Vancouver candidate for the park board. Mackinnon is active in parks and green space issues, with a focus on access, preservation, and conservation. Having attended park board meetings for years even before being elected to the board, Mackinnon has been a strong, consistent advocate for maintaining Vancouver’s parks and green spaces in pristine condition.

Michael Wiebe for Vancouver Park Board

 Michael Wiebe is my running mate as a Green Party of Vancouver Park Baord candidate. Here is some information so you can get to know him better.

 Bio: Michael Wiebe grew up skating on Jericho pond, swimming at English Bay, and cycling Stanley Park. He’s now a local business owner and community leader who wants to work to preserve and enhance the best of Vancouver. He started by volunteering at age 12, by mapping out the wheelchair accessibility of all trails in Stanley Park. At age 16, Wiebe became a Lifeguard for the Park Board and would later co-found the Vancouver Lifeguard Association.
After earning his Bachelor’s in Business Administration, Wiebe worked for the Provincial Government in managing public board appointments and helped build the Best Practice Guidelines. He later migrated to the hospitality industry in order to gain management experience, ultimately leading him to opening his own restaurant.

As a director of the Mount Pleasant BIA, Wiebe feels called to be more involved in community advocacy work. He understands that Vancouver is in a phase of rapid growth with a powerful potential for change, and wants to help ensure that the right decisions are being made, guided by evidence-based policy and the principles of sustainability.

Why is Michael running for Park Board with the Green Party of Vancouver? - “I’m running for Parks Board Commissioner because the voices of our city have been lost,” says Wiebe. “I noticed this first-hand on the Mount Pleasant Implementation Committee. We need to take advantage of the opportunities this city has during a time of growth to work together to maximize our resources and build more natural parks and a healthier food system; foster grassroots community initiatives; and create a sustainable waste management program. ”
Learn more about Michael Wiebe at becascadian.com. 

On November 15 vote Green Party 1st: 

Mackinnon & Wiebe for Park Board