As many of us media types reported last week, Vision Vancouver spent a whopping $3.4 million on its 2014 civic election campaign.
It’s the most money the ruling party at city hall has spent on one campaign since it became a party about a decade ago.
But Vision has been raking in the cash and spending it for years.
If my accounting is correct, the party has easily spent more than $7 million over the last four elections. The NPA has been close behind in dumping cash into its campaigns and it’s hardly been the David to Goliath, a nice little fable the party was telling in the 2014 vote; the NPA spent $2 million this time around.
Anyway, I spoke to Vision co-chairperson Maria Dobrinskaya about spending millions of bucks over the last decade and asked her if it was all worth it. Of course, she was going to say it was, right?
This is what she said:
“Is it worth it? Well, I think that the voters in Vancouver would say yes to that because we just had our mayor [Gregor Robertson] and a majority council elected for the third time. Is it worth it? Well, it’s a tough question for me to respond to because by saying yes, then I’m justifying that huge amount of money that’s been spent. I’ve already said [earlier in the interview] that I think it would be a far superior system if we had significant campaign finance reform. But, yes, given the situation, I think that Vancouver has benefited. From the two terms of government that we’ve had, there’s been a lot of really progressive and lasting policy.”
She went on to talk about council’s plan to protect the environment, its so-called engaged city task force, efforts to end street homelessness, an increase in childcare spaces and a better run school district.
But she knows — and as anybody who pays attention to the civic scene knows — Vision wouldn’t be in a position of power without some serious cash coming its way from wealthy corporations and unions.
I listed some of the big money people and organizations in a story I published last week.
CUPE B.C ($230,900), Keg head David Aisenstat ($130,000), Holborn Holdings ($105,000), Amacon Management Services Corp ($75,000), George Wong and Magnum Projects ($75,000) and Concord Pacific and its subsidiaries ($61,250) were among some of the deep-pocketed players.
In a second review of the documents, I also noted an individual donation of $37,500 from Lululemon founder Chip Wilson. Couple that with the $37,500 he gave under Low Tide Properties and he was in for $75,000.
Since I’ve got the documents in front of me, I thought I’d mention a few of the lesser knowns and give you a sense of who else has a spot on the Vision train, albeit in the caboose and — in the case of two contributors — a hazy caboose.
I’m referring to nonprofits the Medical Pot Now Society, which gave $2,500, and Eden Medicinal Society, which handed over $1,750. The mayor and his Vision colleagues, by the way, are on record of wanting marijuana regulated and taxed as a strategy to combat organized crime and improve public health and safety.
Steven Lippman, who owns the York Rooms and other single-room-occupancy hotels in the Downtown Eastside and has been a target of activists accusing him of jacking up rents and forcing people out of hotels, gave Vision at least $9,500.
Great Canadian Gaming Corp and Busters Towing each gave $10,000 while the Vancouver Taxi Association contributed $49,000. The Vancouver Elementary School Teachers’ Association donated $17,500.
Hootsuite Holdings Inc., which operates a social media platform popular with Twitter users, gave $2,000.
Hey, maybe I should tweet that.
twitter.com/Howellings
