VANCOUVER -- The next mayor of Vancouver is a bicycle-riding environmentalist who is super fit, loves the outdoors and has a passion for social justice. In his hippie phase, he went back to the land, became a farmer and grew organic produce. City councillor Peter Ladner winces at this list of typical West Coast clichés. Ruefully, he admits they're all true. The trouble is, they're also true of his opponent, Gregor Robertson. One or the other is going to be elected Vancouver's Olympics mayor this fall (unless Carole Taylor, who says she's not running, changes her mind).
But how will voters tell which one is which? "I have much more
experience," Mr. Ladner says. Until last week, people expected Sam
Sullivan to be Vancouver's Olympics mayor. But Mr. Sullivan's
leadership wasn't nearly as inspiring as his life story - a
quadriplegic who triumphed over adversity. So his party turfed him and
nominated Mr. Ladner, instead.
On the surface, life in Cascadia is as pleasant as ever. People pretty much ignore the rest of Canada, and the city is bursting with Olympic enthusiasm. The main problem is sticker shock. The Premier's new carbon tax is about to push gas prices above $1.50, and a modest house with a modest yard will run you a million bucks. A lot of people want to live in paradise.
But even paradise has some running sores. Panhandlers and street sleepers are downtown fixtures. And the Downtown Eastside remains the most concentrated scene of human degradation in North America. "We've been dragged down by our shame over our social problems," Mr. Ladner says. "We need to restore a sense of pride in this city."
Well, people have been promising that for years. But Mr. Ladner insists that both government and the private sector are showing a new will to tackle the problems. The fact that the world's media will descend in 2010 no doubt fuels a certain sense of urgency. Mr. Ladner, who co-founded a weekly newspaper called Business in Vancouver, is clearly more market-oriented in his approach than his NDP opponent. He wants the Downtown Eastside to become a mixed-income community, with real businesses and middle-class condo dwellers alongside supportive housing. That will create jobs, and an environment "where people don't think it's normal to be shooting up drugs in the street."
Not exactly radical. But this being Vancouver, he's got to woo the poverty/homeless lobby. "We are succeeding in attracting investment, and yet when a condo project is approved, people panic because they think rich people will take over. They say it's really going to change the community. I say, it's the poorest postal code in Canada, so isn't it time for it to change?"
Mr. Ladner is a big believer in the Broken Window Theory, which holds that taking care of the little things is important. "There need to be some standards of behaviour, no matter what your problems are. You can't be threatening people at bus stops or urinating in the street." For one thing, it's bad for business. "We're building a big convention centre here. This had better be a welcoming place for conferences or we're going to be in trouble."
Vancouverites aren't happy, either. The disorder is leaking into better neighbourhoods, and gangs are a serious problem, too. Even though crime statistics are down, people feel less safe. So Mr. Ladner is vowing to hire more police. The message is likely to play well among the city's huge Asian community, which has far less sympathy for the underclass than the city councillors do.
Mr. Ladner has other plans. A public bike-sharing system, for one. He usually commutes to work by bike, and he always has extra bike maps in case he runs into a cyclist who looks lost. "The only time I won't cycle is when there's ice." When the world's media come to town, let's hope it's the free bicycles that capture their interest, not the junkies.
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