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Toronto Star
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Toronto Star
Ex-mayor Gregor Robertson gets second shot at housing crisis in Carney's cabinet
Gregor Robertson set himself a bold goal as the newly elected mayor in Vancouver in 2008 – ending street homelessness in the city by 2015. Seventeen years later, British Columbia remains immersed in the national housing crisis with Vancouver's rent sitting at the highest in the country and the number of homeless people increasing. Robertson is getting another chance to make things better, this time on a much bigger stage, after being named housing and infrastructure minister in Prime Minister Mark Carney's new cabinet. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW It's an appointment that some have criticized amid Vancouver's high housing costs, while supporters say Robertson's experience makes him uniquely qualified for the job. Robertson, who was Vancouver's longest consecutive serving mayor from 2008 to 2018, won his riding in Vancouver Fraserview–South Burnaby with 52 per cent of the vote. Andrea Reimer, who co-chaired Robertson's mayoral nomination campaign and went on to join him on city council, said in an interview Tuesday that she 'can't think of a person across this country who has put as much time into trying to solve the housing crisis' with what she called a 'very skinny' set of tools available to mayors and little help from other levels of government at the time. 'I think he has a lot of pent up frustration around a lack of action from those levels that he would feel excited about finally being able to act on,' she said of Robertson's new, larger stick in Ottawa. Reimer called Robertson a 'courageous visionary' who was willing to articulate problems even if he knew the city would not be able to solve them alone. 'He was the first politician in Canada to really stand up and say, 'This is a problem and someone needs to do something about it,' and (be) willing to take ownership and responsibility for trying to do something.' ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Prime Minister Mark Carney unveiled his ministry with a trimmed-down cabinet and some big names left off the list. Here are some of the highlights from the new cabinet. (May 13, 2025 / The Canadian Press) But as someone who once lived on the streets, Reimer said she saw improvements when he was in office. Robertson co-founded the Happy Planet organic juice company before moving into politics in 2005, first in the provincial legislature with the New Democrats and then later as mayor. He was well known for arriving to news conferences on his bicycle, often wearing a suit and always wearing a bike helmet. Robertson is also now the minister responsible for Pacific Economic Development Canada. He joins Delta MP Jill McKnight, who is taking over the Veterans Affairs file, and three secretaries of state as the B.C. contingent in cabinet. Federal Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre says Robertson's record on housing is that prices ballooned during his tenure as mayor, giving the city the most expensive housing prices in North America. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is criticizing Prime Minister Mark Carney's new cabinet and says it includes several members of former prime minister Justin Trudeau's team. Poilievre says the Conservatives won't "relexively oppose" everything Carney's government does, but will keep it accountable. (May 13, 2025 / The Canadian Press) Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation data show that during Robertson's time as mayor of the City of Vancouver, the average price of single-family and semi-detached homes rose 179 per cent across the broader Metro Vancouver area. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Carney told reporters that Robertson brings 'the type of experience' needed to help tackle Canada's housing crisis The prime minister said Robertson was on the team that developed his government's housing policy, which will look at how Ottawa can help get municipal costs down and 'regulation out of the way' so more houses can be built. 'We're going to have to change how we build. And a lot of that expertise, not exclusively, but a lot of it has actually been developed in British Columbia,' Carney said. 'Minister Robertson is very familiar with it. We're going to incorporate that, but in a pan-Canadian strategy to really drive this.' Housing was a key platform point for Carney during the election, including a promise to double the rate of residential construction over the next decade to reach 500,000 homes per year. Robertson will be shepherding a plan that includes a pledge for $25 billion in financing to prefabricated homebuilders and $10 billion in low-cost financing and capital to affordable homebuilders. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Conservative Party of B.C. Leader John Rustad said he 'loves to see the fact that there is representation at a senior level from British Columbia' in the federal government. When asked about Robertson's appointment, Rustad said he's 'not quite sure he would be the person I would have put into a position like that, given his record in Vancouver, given his record of some of the problems that have been created over a period of time that he was an integral part of.' B.C. New Democrat house leader Mike Farnworth, who was elected to the legislature in 2005 along with Robertson, welcomed Robertson's appointment and rejected suggestions that Robertson should be blamed for the rise of housing prices during his time as mayor. 'Mayors don't determine housing prices, but mayors do bring a wealth of experience, and he's served in the (provincial) legislature,' Farnworth said. 'I think it's good to have a member of the cabinet from B.C. dealing with such an important issue.' Farnworth added that Robertson possesses 'good people skills' and experience on the local and provincial level. 'So, he will be able to bring that perspective to Ottawa,' he said. Reimer said Robertson's time as mayor prepared him for the attention and expectations that are being placed on the file. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW 'I think mayors are particularly used to being called to account on a wide range of issues. They live in the cities that they represent, and thus are held to account in the grocery store, on streets, in transit, wherever they are,' she said. — With files from Wolfgang Depner in Victoria This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 13, 2025. 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Globe and Mail
14-05-2025
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Former Vancouver mayor whose housing policies made him unpopular now federal housing minister
Gregor Robertson, Canada's new housing minister, is a former Vancouver mayor blamed by some for presiding over a period of skyrocketing housing prices, but credited by others for bringing in precedent-setting policies aimed at tackling an affordability problem that has persisted since the 1990s. Mr. Robertson, who was appointed to Prime Minister Mark Carney's new cabinet on Tuesday, had a mixed record as mayor. Notably, he never managed to deliver on his promise to end street homelessness – though its rate of increase slowed while he was in office, and he did persuade the province to fund shelters that ran for the entire winter season, rather than only on cold or rainy winter days. Now, his critics and admirers are watching with interest to see how the bike-riding, environmentalist former mayor will handle a portfolio centred on a housing affordability crisis he once struggled to get higher levels of government to regard as more than a Vancouver-only issue. 'I hope he sees the flaws of the system,' said Rick Ilich, chair of the B.C.-based Urban Development Institute and CEO of Townline Homes Inc. Mr. Ilich, like others in development, appreciates the business-oriented approach of Mr. Robertson, who co-founded the Happy Planet juice company before he entered politics in 2005. Mr. Robertson served as an NDP MLA from 2005 until 2008, and then won three municipal elections. He served as mayor for 10 years. After leaving the mayor's office in 2018, he worked for a private sustainable-development company, Nexii, but left in late 2023 after the company ran into financial problems. 'He's actually a level-headed guy, measured in his approach. I suggest we might have an ally in getting through to government,' Mr. Ilich said, referring to the housing development industry. Randy Helten, a blogger and one of the mayor's most persistent critics, also hopes that Mr. Robertson has learned some lessons from his years enmeshed in the housing crisis. 'My only hope is that he's a changed man,' Mr. Helten said. Mr. Helten launched his blog, CityHallWatch, shortly after Mr. Robertson and his Vision Vancouver party initiated a new policy to encourage developers reeling from the 2008 housing collapse to switch over to building rental homes for the first time in decades. Using fee reductions and density bonuses as incentives, the STIR (Short-Term Incentives for Rental) program resulted in some new projects – and a huge uproar from some residents, including Mr. Helten, who believed developers were getting too much for too little affordable housing. 'He started off good, but with the global financial crisis I think he panicked and I think he was influenced by his donors,' Mr. Helten said. Vision Vancouver was unusually successful during its three election campaigns in raising money from developers, and also unions and left-wing supporters. In his last term, Mr. Robertson initiated a policy to award even greater density bonuses to developers who agreed to keep a certain percentage of the units in new buildings at below-market rents. And he announced a plan to build 1,000 social-housing units on seven different pieces of city-owned land. Three of those seven have only just started construction, while one is still sitting undeveloped. Stepan Vdovine, a vice-president at Amacon Developments and former president of the mayor's political party, said Mr. Robertson struggled to come up with housing solutions at a time when both the provincial and federal governments weren't that interested in what was viewed as a uniquely bad housing situation in Vancouver. He believes Mr. Robertson and Mr. Carney will make an excellent team because they both favour a pragmatic, business approach. 'He's not made for bureaucratic process. He wants action,' Mr. Vdovine said. But others in the development community worry that Mr. Robertson will try to attach too many environmental objectives – energy efficiency and water recycling, for example – to housing-support programs. They believe the pursuit of these goals has led to some of the current issues with unaffordability. 'All the new environmental costs, we're getting into $55,000 to $60,000 per home on that policy alone,' Mr. Ilich said. Chris Gardner, chief executive officer of the non-union Independent Contractors and Businesses Association, said he is concerned Mr. Robertson will carry on with policies that he said were flawed then and are still flawed. 'He said he would end homelessness and homelessness got worse, the streets got worse,' Mr. Gardner added.
Toronto Star
13-05-2025
- Business
- Toronto Star
Carney touts housing credentials of Vancouver ex-mayor Robertson as he joins cabinet
OTTAWA - Prime Minister Mark Carney says Gregor Robertson brings 'the type of experience' needed to help tackle Canada's housing crisis after a decade as the mayor of Vancouver – a period that coincided with sharp increases in the city's home prices. The new housing and infrastructure minister – who co-founded the Happy Planet organic juice company before moving into politics in 2005 – is among 24 new faces in Carney's Liberal cabinet unveiled Tuesday. Carney says Robertson was on the team that developed his government's housing policy, which will look at how Ottawa can help get municipal costs down and 'regulation out of the way' so more houses can be built. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced a major Cabinet shakeup Tuesday, including a new foreign minister, Anita Anand, as he shapes a newly re-elected Liberal government. (AP Video / May 13, 2025) Robertson was mayor of Vancouver from 2008 to 2018, after previously serving as a member of the B.C. legislature for the provincial New Democrats. He returns to politics after winning Vancouver Fraserview–South Burnaby for the Liberals with 52 per cent of the vote Federal Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre says Robertson's record on housing is that prices ballooned during his tenure as mayor, giving the city the most expensive housing prices in North America. Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation data show that during Robertson's time as mayor of the City of Vancouver, the average price of single-family and semi-detached homes rose 179 per cent across the broader Metro Vancouver area. Housing was a key platform point for Carney during the election, including a promise to double the rate of residential construction over the next decade to reach 500,000 homes per year. 'We're going to have to change how we build. And a lot of that expertise, not exclusively, but a lot of it has actually been developed in British Columbia,' Carney said. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW 'Minister Robertson is very familiar with it. We're going to incorporate that, but in a pan-Canadian strategy to really drive this.' Robertson also becomes minister responsible for Pacific economic development. This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 13, 2025. Politics Headlines Newsletter Get the latest news and unmatched insights in your inbox every evening Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. Please enter a valid email address. Sign Up Yes, I'd also like to receive customized content suggestions and promotional messages from the Star. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Politics Headlines Newsletter You're signed up! You'll start getting Politics Headlines in your inbox soon. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page.
