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Corrigan Out in Burnaby; Green Keithley Wins Council Seat

New mayor Mike Hurley promises quick action on housing.

Andrea Smith 21 Oct 2018TheTyee.ca

Andrea D. Smith is an intern with The Tyee as a part of Journalists for Human Rights’ Emerging Indigenous Reporter program.

Burnaby’s demoviction issue brought a crashing end to the 31-year political career of Mayor Derek Corrigan Saturday night.

Newbie politician and retired firefighter Mike Hurley captured 53 per cent of the vote, while Corrigan — mayor for the last 16 years — trailed with 41 per cent.

Hurley’s campaign focused on housing and halting the demolition of low-rise, affordable apartment buildings in the community. He promised a moratorium on new developments until displaced residents of older buildings can be offered affordable housing. Hurley was endorsed by the New Westminster and District Labour Council, which had backed Corrigan in past elections.

Corrigan’s defeat — his support fell by 40 per cent from the results in 2014 — came even though his Burnaby Citizens’ Association captured seven of eight council seats.

The Green Party made a breakthrough as Joe Keithley, also known as Joey Shithead of the punk band DOA, captured a council seat. Keithley had planned to run for mayor, but stepped aside to support Hurley.

Despite the council success, the mood was sombre at the Burnaby Citizens’ Association campaign celebration.

“We lost a man who stands up for Burnaby… We lost a man who stands up against the pipeline… We lost a man that stands for decency and for working people,” said association president Gord Larkin. “We’ve done a marvellous job and so has the man who is not our mayor anymore.”

Corrigan told the crowd at the Burnaby Winter Club that the good news was that the Burnaby Citizens Association extended its 31-year control of council and school board.

“I want all of you to celebrate, because we won the council, we won the school board,” said Corrigan, mayor for the last 16 years and a councillor for 15 years before that. “We elected a whole group of great people who are going to go on and lead Burnaby in a progressive direction for all of the citizens of our city.”

“And Lord almighty, I am free,” he said, noting “the burden of office, and the idea that each and every day, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, the only thing on my mind is service to this community.”

“Now to be able to look ahead and say, the only thing on my mind is to be of service to my family and look after my grandchildren… That to me is a huge personal reward,” said Corrigan.

He slipped out almost immediately after delivering his speech. (Reportedly to go shake Mike Hurley’s hand.)

The main issue in the campaign has been a wave of evictions and demolition of low-rise apartments to clear the way for new development as part of the city’s plan to increase density around transit hubs. A poll taken days before the election found it was the top issue for voters. Perhaps as a result, voter turnout increased to 34 per cent in this election from 26 per cent in 2014.

Hurley raised the issue in a victory celebration at the Firefighters Public House in Burnaby.

“We’re going to deliver change, first of all, by really listening to the citizens of Burnaby,” he said. “There were a lot of upset people throughout the city about how the residents of Metrotown were thrown out of their homes and had to move on to other cities, and left our city. So that’s the issue we have to get to work on right away, to make sure that doesn’t happen again.”

Corrigan and the BCA were also known for their efforts to fight the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project and close ties to the provincial NDP.

In this campaign, Corrigan had promised to provide more affordable rental housing by creating “rental-only” zones. But voters apparently saw the move as too little, too late.

Colleen Jordan, one of seven BCA councillors elected, predicted “growing pains” as Hurley works with the council.

“It’s going to be challenging because we have to always consider what’s in the best interest of the citizens of our city, and we have a new mayor that’s made a lot of promises, but he still has to work with a council that may have different opinions,” she said.

Jordan, who has been on council since Corrigan first became mayor, had a different explanation for his defeat.

“When you’ve been around a long time, every time you make a decision, you make someone unhappy,” she said. “And sooner or later the cumulative total of those things means you don’t win the next go-round. I think that’s what happened here.”  [Tyee]

Read more: Municipal Politics

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