SCC Council Candidate Questions Surrey's Spending on Olympics

Surrey Civic Coalition (SCC) City Council candidate Stephanie Ryan wants to know why the City of Surrey had to buy its way into providing the volunteer training centre for the 2010 Olympics. Ryan is a keen supporter of the 2010 Olympics, but believes that the economic times require good fiscal leadership and a view to the city's bottom line.

"The city paid VANOC $2 million for the 'membership privileges' of using the Olympic logo, being a part of the Torch Relay and the Cultural Olympiad, and to have our new recreation centre in Whalley be used for volunteer training before the Olympics," Ryan said.

Ryan questions whether due diligence was used in negotiating the deal.

"Surrey is building a $10.5 million Volunteers Centre for the Olympics at no cost to VANOC, and it's not clear to me why we had to pay a full $2 million on top of that contribution."

She says a fiscally responsible approach in city hall is more important than ever given the forecasts of an economic downturn. She's particularly concerned that the city will find it extremely difficult to find money for improving roads and infrastructure in the coming years, as development slows down in the city as a result of the global credit crunch.

Ryan notes, "Between 75 and 80 per cent of all road and infrastructure improvements in Surrey are paid for through development cost charges (DCCs), and as development slows, the revenue generated from this source will drop dramatically.

"This year, the city found an extra $1.6 million for infrastructure improvements in the form of a road levy. Down the road, we could use that $2 million membership we paid to be a venue city."

Ryan also thinks it was perhaps a poor financial decision on the part of the city to fast-track the volunteers centre building project.

"Fast-tracking a project drives up the cost, and you risk having cost overruns. With a little more planning and foresight, the city may have been able to save more money, which then could have gone towards roads and infrastructure improvements that are so badly needed in Surrey," says Ryan.

We still need to do more about affordable housing and homelessness in Surrey

Stephanie Ryan, Surrey Civic Coalition council candidate, applauds yesterday's announcement that 30 to 40 units of modular supportive housing will come to Surrey.

The agreement is a partnership between VANOC, RONA, the provincial government and the city. "It's great for Surrey and will help address the issue of homelessness," said Ryan.

She said Homelessness Awareness Week was an opportune time to note, "The city has made significant progress in addressing homelessness in the last three years, especially with the establishment of the Housing & Homelesness Society.

But Ryan, who has researched the lack of commercial development in Whalley, said there is much more that can be done.

"City Council has chosen to not lobby the provincial government to build more co-op housing in Surrey. It hasn't yet taken steps to protect existing rental stock for the long-term, and to build more non-market housing stock in the short-term. Nor has the city examined innovative solutions such as introducing the idea of location-efficient mortgages at the regional level."

Ryan also thinks people in Surrey still need to know more about the deal that was struck. "We haven't been told what the value of the land on the part of the city will be," she said.

Ryan hopes the city will consult the community when choosing a location for the supportive housing.