PV Vancouver Bureau

     A year after sweeping the right-wing Non-Partisan Alliance out of office, Vancouver's tenuous centre-left alliance between Vision and the Coalition of Progressive Electors is looking frayed at the edges.

     Unity between the two civic parties remains solid on the Vancouver School Board, where the four Vision and three COPE trustees have been a model of cooperation. Facing a wide range of new costs imposed on schools, the trustees have been at the forefront of resistance to the Campbell government's botched education policies. For the first time in memory, teachers, other school staff unions, parent groups, and school trustees are fighting for improved, guaranteed funding. That unity is directly linked to the advocacy campaign carried out by the VSB's chair, Vision's Patti Bacchus, and vice-chair, COPE's Jane Bouey.

     But meanwhile, differences are widening between Vision's Mayor Robertson and his party's seven city councillors, and COPE's David Cadman and Ellen Woodsworth. The two groups still vote the same way on many issues, but some key splits have emerged.

     One concerns the debate over civil liberties during the upcoming Winter Olympics. COPE's councillors have joined with free speech advocates to oppose sweeping measures to restrict criticism of the negative impact of the Olympics in Vancouver. While the Vision majority claims that these moves are intended only to block illegal advertising, the question of what constitutes "legal protests" during the Olympics remains up in the air.

     Perhaps even more significant for the future of city policies is Vision's move to further shift the tax burden from businesses to homeowners. This strategy is historically the aim of right-wing civic administrations, just as resistance to higher taxes on homeowners has been linked to COPE and its allies in the labour and social justice movements.

     An important example of how Vision's approach has alienated former friends has been the response of the Think City group, which has organized citizen dialogues since 2002 in Vancouver. Some Think City activists figured in the Vision group's exit from COPE during the 2002-2005 term, while others remained pro-COPE in their outlook, but most were strong supporters of the alliance which came together in 2008 to oust the NPA.

     But recently, Think City has come out swinging against Vision's budget plans. An angry statement from the group's staff notes that "Vancouver's city hall is in the midst of the decision-making process for the annual operating budget during the biggest financial crisis in a generation. Millions of dollars have disappeared from city coffers due to out-of-control Olympic costs, downloading and transfer cuts by senior governments and reduced revenues from development. For the second budget in a row, balancing the books will include some tough choices to deal with the projected multi-million dollar shortfall."

     In the face of this crisis, says the group, "council and staff have developed their plans in secret leaving little time or opportunity for citizens to have meaningful input."

     While City Hall has been working on the 2010 budget since last Feb. 3, it took until Oct. 23 to announce that consultations would begin Oct. 25 and wrap up by mid-November, a mere three weeks.

     Usually Vancouver's budget is completed in the spring, but due to the Olympics, the final decision on its $900 million annual operating budget will be taken this December, not next April. The city faces huge cost pressures from previous commitments, and the loss of nearly $16 million in development fees as a result of the economic crisis. Yet unlike higher levels of government, the city is not allowed to run a deficit.

     Looking at a potential shortfall of $61.7 million, the city reduced that gap to $28.1 million by increasing user fees, permits and licenses by four per cent, reviewing services, and extending its hiring freeze for a second year.

     On Oct. 20, city council instructed staff to come back with a revised budget that increases property tax by 2.3 per cent, and to find another $20 million through increased charges and service cuts. The city is also planning a further two per cent shift of taxes from commercial to residential properties. If the overall tax increase stays at 2.3 per cent, this will result in a 4.3 per cent increase for residents while businesses (or their landlords) will see a minuscule tax hike of 0.3 per cent.

     The cuts may include shorter opening hours for pools, libraries and community centres, higher charges for senior centres, reduced cleaning of streets and parks, less road maintenance, higher parking fees and library fines, fewer police or reduced support for community groups.

     Think City has recommended that rather than cut services, the city should suspend the tax shift for a year. Combined with a four per cent overall increase spread across all property classes, this would generate $22 million, and cost the average homeowner only $5.50 per month in extra property tax.

     Other options backed by Think City include waiving the four per cent pay increase for senior managers (saving nearly $3 million), and extending parking meter hours to compensate for the $1.8 million in parking income the city will lose during the Olympics.

     The final budget will come before council on Dec. 15.

     In a commentary on the November 2008 civic election, People's Voice noted that "Cadman and Woodsworth have made it clear that they hope to work closely with the Vision majority to tackle the urgent problems of homelessness and inadequate public transit. But the two will also be free to stake out independent positions if Mayor Robertson and his caucus yield to powerful pressures from the developers and other business interests."

     One year later, the Vision councillors are back-pedalling on the more progressive aspects of their platform. That makes the outlook for future centre-left unity cloudy, but it has given COPE renewed stature as the voice of working people in Vancouver. The balance of forces between the two parties may tilt in COPE's favour by the time of the 2011 civic campaign.