A surprise decision at the park board Monday night saw a fractured NPA vote that resulted in the unprecedented election of a Green Party chairman for the first time in Vancouver history.
Although the NPA holds the balance of power with four commissioners on the seven-person board, Michael Wiebe of the Green Party was elected to the top leadership position after he was nominated by Erin Shum, a first-term commissioner for the NPA.
Shum split with her party and did not vote for Casey Crawford, the NPA commissioner nominated for chairman.
The out-going chairwoman is the NPA’s Sarah Kirby-Yung, who took over from fellow NPA commissioner John Coupar a year ago. Kirby-Yung nominated Crawford for chairman.
The chairperson term lasts one year. The board was elected following the 2014 municipal campaign.
Wiebe consults businesses on sustainability and lives in Mount Pleasant, where he is a director with the business improvement area. A first-term commissioner, he previously helped create the Vancouver Lifeguard Association.
