Kirk LaPointe

Spent some time today in an extensive discussion on @WestVanDistrict issues with Nigel Malkin, head of the West Vancouver Stakeholders Association. youtu.be/9EGFj9PEseA?si…

Few more ethical, patient, endearing people in our craft than Chris. Ever available, ever supportive, pressed, never without a moment to help anyone. Grounded in his love of family, selfless in his love of journalism. Heartbroken by his early loss. nsnews.com/opinion/andy-p…

My take on my @WestVanDistrict mayoralty campaign website on the necessary steps on the debacle of the North Shore Wastewater Treatment Plant: kirklapointe.ca/campaign-noteb…

The settlement disclosed today by @MetroVancouver and @ACCIONA, the original contractor for the #northshorewastewatertreatmentplant, opens the door for a full, independent inquiry into the cost overruns that saw a $700 million project soar to $3.86 billion. West Vancouver mayor and council have been silent on this. As mayor, I will get the answers.

Pay parking may indeed be a great idea for @WestVanDistrict . But @wvmayorcouncil have made it a terrible one. No matter how they keep fiddling and digging, they can't see the basic sense in pausing the program until they can figure out how it might make sense without hurting local businesses. Instead, they will keep trying to thread the needle with their eyes closed. On Monday night, yet another swing and miss--only this one was a real insult to the community. A scheme was concocted so that most councillors only saw it a couple of hours before the meeting, put on the agenda with no notice to the public, promised by the mayor as a new recipe to satisfy, but clearly served from the oven half-baked. What probably would have been wise for council to discuss in-camera was instead an on-camera fiasco. The business owners in attendance were gasping, groaning and giggling as the escapade unfurled in one giant improv session. An amendment was expanded and appended and crafted on the fly, and dictated and wordsmithed and edited to a staff member to input on a keyboard, so we could see what they were thinking and reconsidering and revising ad nauseum, until they at last reached grudging, exhausted, resigned agreement. And the agreement was to. . .study the situation! Find best practices! In time for. . .next year! This dawning of project management, at last, comes two years into the exercise, and the first summer in which pay parking has come to bustling Ambleside Park, adjacent to a fragile local business district featuring free term parking. Of all the places to mess with, this is the worst. Given there is next to no parking enforcement, motorists are often choosing to park free for hours and impeding access to local enterprise. Whatever revenue is being generated by pay parking is, the businesses argue credibly, minor compared to their losses as cars hog the storefronts. As half-measures, the District decided in its drawn-out discussion Monday to permit 90 minutes of free parking in Ambleside Park to try to mitigate the free parking in front of Ambleside businesses. It will post signs to encourage visitors to support local commerce. It will interview (this week, we were told) and hire by-law officers. It will kick the can down the road to 2027. And oh yes, let's not forget, it will subject local enterprise to the painful effects of a problematic plan. Their losses will be part of a case study for a consultant. Ironically, the study on what's hurting business will be financed by pay parking revenue. This was mayor and council's last likely opportunity pause the program for the busy beach summer to properly reset, and it instead persisted. The inability to concede a mistake, much less apologize, is a habit of an administration also allergic to consultation. It didn't see the value before it changed the very culture of free-parking WestVan to take time to consult, to ask and learn from others, and to stop when everyone could see it wasn't working. Poor planning, process and practice have turned a genuine revenue opportunity into a genuine shambles. You might recall that our Charter of Rights and Freedoms was written, in part, on the back of a napkin, in the so-called Kitchen Accord. West Vancouver mayor and council tried to replicate this episode of history Monday, only with different results. The shame is that there are many solutions other municipalities long ago discovered that build buy-in from the community and protect business. A good parking plan does more than raise money. Done well, it becomes a parking management, village-support and park-investment tool. I suppose it will have to wait for the next mayor and council. kirklapointe.ca

Dropped by the ⁦@Conservative_BC⁩ debate. Should be an interesting one.

Terrific presentation today by #RobbNash at the 59th annual BC Leadership Prayer Breakfast. An excellent focus on mental health to a room of community-minded British Columbians.

The @WebSummit is headed to Vancouver in mid-May, and it's a giant conference with tens of thousands converging to talk business and reflect on the state of it. I was fortunate @yisyliu_eth, a transplanted Vancouverite now in Hong Kong, the conference leader, gave me the opportunity to chat on the challenges and issues for my weekly #SMBReport. youtube.com/watch?v=FcEJt9…

Reminds me it’s time to work on my flexibility.

Such a kind man, such a person of community, such a terrific broadcaster, such a shock. His goaltending tips for beer league never helped me, but nothing can. But his sense of humour could help anyone. RIP Cheech. sportsnet.ca/nhl/article/sp…?

My take on @WestVanDistrict pay parking problems. It has to be paused now, yet mayor and council decided not to do so Monday night. (Apologies for captioning issues; being fixed.)

Pay parking has been poorly introduced in @WestVanDistrict. It's hurting businesses and has to be paused and rethought. My latest from my campaign notebook: kirklapointe.ca/campaign-noteb…

This is great news for the @PWHL__Vancouver franchise and community. Let's see if the @Canucks can also fetch a first overall pick. nytimes.com/athletic/72311…

Is there any faster player in ⁦@MLS⁩ than ⁦#Bruno?

Good crowd tonight for @WhitecapsFC, chanting Save The Caps. Ridiculous that we might lose the team.

My latest post in my campaign for the @WestVanDistrict mayoralty is on the need for an inquiry into the @MetroVancouver project for the North Shore Wastewater Treatment plant. kirklapointe.ca/campaign-noteb…

Must admit, he pitches relatively well after surrendering grand slams.