Location, location, location
Metro Vancouver is one of the best places in the world to be. What makes Burnaby so liveable? According to Burnaby's mayor, location is one of the city's prime advantages.
"Burnaby has centrality which is a major factor in the success of any location," said Corrigan. "In real estate they say, 'location, location, location.' Well, being right in the middle of it all is the best location. It gives us the benefits of being in the urban core but it avoids much of the density and heavy congestion you get in Vancouver."
Corrigan also points out that Burnaby is one of the greenest cities, with one-quarter of the land being park and open space. Water courses have been protected, leaving a city dotted with ravines and streams. Burnaby is also the only municipality to protect the whole of the Fraser foreshore that runs along the southern boundary.
"We chose to protect it for the environmental values and for the public access," commented the mayor. "And we've done the same thing, every opportunity we've had, along the Burrard Inlet, reclaiming as much land as we can in order to ensure there's public access. We also purchased back from Simon Fraser University the Burnaby Mountain conservation area."
Corrigan credits these moves in making Burnaby a better place to live. "They're a big reason that people in Burnaby have been prepared to accept the additional density throughout our community. It's been relatively easy for the public to accept the town centre concepts and high-rise development around SkyTrain stations because, I think, people are very comfortable with the level of green space that exists."
Growing Burnaby's town centres
Density is on the rise in Burnaby, as it is throughout Metro Vancouver. The City of Burnaby is protecting single-family residential neighbourhoods while accommodating more people in town centres. One of council's top priorities is to ensure this growth helps to produce a better community.
Mayor Corrigan: "We have formed a town centre concept in which we have the Brentwood, Lougheed, Edmunds, and Metrotown town centres. We've looked to intensify density in those town centres around transit so we are really utilizing our transit stations to the maximum to ensure that people can live without a car or live with one car and be able to get where they want to go by transit. We also are trying to create opportunities for jobs within those town centres so people can not only use transit but also can walk or bike to work."
Getting down to business
When it comes to business, Burnaby council's first priority is to retain and grow the businesses which are already here. The city has conducted economic development studies and works closely with the Burnaby Board of Trade to assess economic direction.
"We've prioritized many areas of our economy in which we see the potential for knowledge-based, green industry where we are utilizing a well-educated work force to ensure that we've got good-paying jobs," said Corrigan. "Whether it's in movies or the gaming industry or high-tech development or biotech, we've been looking for each and every opportunity to grow and support those areas."
The mayor no longer sees Burnaby as a manufacturing centre but rather as a place where people design innovative goods that are made elsewhere.
"We're focused very heavily on using the assets we have in our community now," added Corrigan. "BCIT and SFU, which tend to spin-off knowledge-based industries; developing our telecommunications industry as a result of our Telus base; looking to develop our fuel-cell industry with Ballard finding their home here. Each of these areas are places where we're trying to capitalize on our successes and build on them."
Not-for-profit organizations such as the United Way, Pacific Blue Cross, and the BCAA have been solicited and welcomed into the Burnaby community. And, Ritchie Brothers, the world's biggest auctioneer of equipment, relocated to Burnaby because of its centrality and natural setting, according to Corrigan.
Responsible growth
Economic, social sustainability, and environmental strategies are being used in planning for Burnaby's growth. The city has struck blue-ribbon citizen panels in these areas, bringing together both experts and laymen to set a direction for the future.
"Healthy finances, a good social infrastructure, and strong environmental values are going to create a better city," said the mayor.
Corrigan believes solving the traffic problems that comes with growth throughout the Lower Mainland is not possible. "The reality," he said, "is it's impossible to alleviate congestion."
However, he sees Burnaby trying to manage it and provide alternatives such as creating more complete communities within the town centres. He draws attention to the fact that Burnaby was one of the first cities to develop urban trails for cyclists and pedestrians to separate bikes from the roadways. While acknowledging that Burnaby is hilly, he hopes people will come to work as well as live in its town centres, making environmentally friendly commuting a viable option. "It's much better to have people working and living within smaller communities where cycling is much easier," he said.
"In addition, we, like other cities, have made major changes in our garbage collection. We've focused heavily on recycling. We're now seeing more than half of our garbage going into a recycling system. We've got very sophisticated food-scrap and green-waste programs."
A sense of belonging
"The idea of community engagement for all ages from children through to seniors is an important element in the way our community works and something we're thinking about all the time," said Corrigan. "We have a very aggressive festivals program in which we encourage community events and help to finance and sponsor those events. We engage our ethnic communities very strongly in order to ensure that they are involved."
The mayor believes good recreational, sports and cultural facilities encourage people to become engaged in their community and be supportive of initiatives.
"We want to make sure there's every reason for people to be out and be engaged in the community around them whether it's to enjoy beautiful scenery, attend a festival, go to a cultural event, or get out and play sport," he said.
Priorities for this term
Corrigan will continue to advocate for affordable social housing for Burnaby, a responsibility of senior government.
"That's a very important goal to try and achieve, but unfortunately one that is outside my purview. I'm left with the role of advocate in trying to accomplish what I think is one of the most crucial roles in the Lower Mainland in having a balance to our communities."
He continued, "I also think it's very important for us to go through in this term that important step of identifying our environmental goals. As a legacy, as my career sort of winds down, I want to be sure that the plans that are put in place will set a direction for decades into the future."
