Read this story from Jeff Lee of The Vancouver Sun on the firing of the City of Vancouver's director of planning, Brent Toderian. (Jan 31, 2012)

This morning Frances Bula, the former Vancouver Sun reporter who now freelances for The Globe and Mail, used anonymous sources to break the story of Toderian’s firing.

Council has since ratified Toderian’s termination, and everyone from Mayor Gregor Robertson and Ballem on down are being nice in how they describe what can only be described as a major change, both for Toderian and for the city. (See Ballem’s internal memo and the public statement below.)

Toderian told me in a telephone conversation that he was surprised by his firing and that it was done “without cause”. That precludes a wrongful dismissal suit, but it also preserves his much-valued integrity because his termination comes down to a difference of opinion, rather than a messy split. It has cost the city plenty: at least one year’s salary at more than $200,000.

As can be expected, people have weighed in on all sides about what caused his departure and what it means in the long term.

Toderian is brash, hard-nosed and ambitious. That style created among some developers, architects and community groups. But that Type-A personality was also in direct conflict with at least one other similar personality, that of Ballem, who has consolidated decision-making under her reign.

Read more: http://blogs.vancouversun.com/2012/01/31/brent-toderian-fired-as-vancouvers-director-of-planning/

This week’s humiliating budget defeat for Toronto mayor Rob Ford, which reversed $20 million in proposed spending cuts, has put new wind in the sails of those fighting to see improved transit services in Canada’s largest city. On his first day in office, Mayor Ford fulfilled a campaign promise by announcing his intention to cancel the Transit City project, a plan proposed by former Mayor David Miller and the Toronto Transit Commission in 2007 that focused on improving service to the city’s woefully underserved suburbs. Upon cancelling the project in December 2010, Mayor Ford announced that the “war on the car” was over. So just what is this transit dust-up all about and why should anyone outside of Toronto even care?

In the second of three stories examining the ramifications of a series of new cross-border agreements, author Nelle Maxey analyzes the Orwellian transportation pact which could see such invasive technologies as predator drones, RFID chips, cell phone and vehicle GPS monitoring brought to bear on Canadians. While the mainstream media's reporting on the recent US-Canada Border Security Deal has focused on relatively benign-sounding trade initiatives, clearly there is much more at stake, including Canada's environment, public resources, civil liberties and sovereignty.

Read this story from BCLocalNews.com on retired NHL star Scott Niedermayer's support of the campaign to stop the controversial Jumbo-Glacier Resort in the Kootenays.

VICTORIA – Opponents of the long-proposed Jumbo Glacier Resort near Cranbrook went on the offensive in the B.C. legislature Tuesday, with retired hockey star Scott Niedermayer joining a local aboriginal group to press for its rejection. Niedermayer joined Kathryn Teneese, chair of the Ktunaxa Nation council and NDP leader Adrian Dix to urge the B.C. government to reject the proposed resort, on Jumbo glacier in the Purcell Mountains​.

The project has been studied for more than 20 years, and received a provincial environmental certificate in 2005. The last step is approval of a master development agreement, which Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations Minister Steve Thomson could make at any time. Teneese showed a video with testimonials of aboriginal and other local residents, and released a study by Simon Fraser University economist Marvin Shaffer that questions the economic viability of adding another ski resort to the region." (Dec. 8, 2011)

Read full article: http://www.bclocalnews.com/news/133922293.html?fb_ref=sidebarActivityFeed

As someone that has spent 42 years of my life protecting the Fraser River Estuary I find the Port Metro Vancouver's latest phase of its upgrading of the Roberts Bank Port facilities including the transportation infrastructure to be of great concern and is again another setback in protecting this globally significant estuary. Continued development in the Roberts Bank area and on the bank itself will reduce options for future generations to benefit from our natural environment and will again degrade the habitats of vast populations of fish, wildlife and harm public recreation and livability.

Read this story from TheTyee.ca on Abbotsford Councillor Patricia Ross' brave stand against a private model for water services in her community being pushed by the town's mayor and others.

"Ross is the sole incumbent to oppose a public-private partnership (P3) that would see the private design, build, partial finance and operation of a water works project in Mission's Stave Lake, a contract of 25 years. Originally a partnership with neighbouring Mission as a way to address future water shortages, in April the district dropped out of applying for a federal P3 grant for the project, in the wake of strong public opposition.

To Ross, Abbotsford broke a 'gentleman's agreement' by going ahead with the P3 without the partnership of Mission. But she has other concerns, including the private operation of the water system, cost uncertainties, and what she sees as the lack of choice given to the public in the matter -- concerns shared by other opponents, including some new council hopefuls." (Nov. 10, 2011)

Read full article: http://thetyee.ca/News/2011/11/10/Abbotsford-P3-Deal/

Damien Gillis on the proposed doubling of Deltaport and conversion of prime farmland, fish and wildlife habitat into an industrialized Foreign Trade Zone.

We’ve known it all along, but at last we hear it out loud. Robin Silvester, the President and CEO of Port Metro Vancouver, has stated that: “Agriculture is emotionally important, but economically [of] relatively low importance to the Lower Mainland. And in terms of food security, [it] is almost meaningless for the Lower Mainland.” So there we have it...finally, honesty from someone in a position of power. Our Premiers and their governments have known it was too political to admit to -- that Delta’s agricultural land will be turned into an industrial park.

On the eve of municipal elections, Delta Council has unanimously voted to begin amending its Official Community Plan, paving the way for a highly controversial housing development by Century Group atop the Southlands (aka Spetifore Farm). The October 17 decision could override a recent lengthy public consultation process that rejected changes to the Tsawwassen Area Plan (one of three communities that constitute Delta) to rezone the property for development...“The public has clearly indicated their wishes to keep this land agricultural," said Dana Maslovat of Southlands the Facts.

It's understandable that motorists are fed up with paying more taxes and levies - we all are. But it's also telling what facts they fail to consider...Of course Translink doesn't have the $400 million for the Evergreen Line! The minuscule tax base they have to draw on is already stretched to the limit. No one wants to raise property and gas taxes but since those are vitually the only tools available to them - and they believe in what they're doing, as do I - they have to make this difficult choice, knowing full-well they will be heckled for it.