Andy Yan

'Facelift': New possibilities for storied Surrey building that has sat vacant since 1998 The building has gained local notoriety for never being occupied, but that may be changing soon

"'Facelift': New possibilities for storied Surrey building that has sat vacant since 1998" as told by @sobiamoman.bsky.social via @vancouversun.bsky.social

#vanpoli #vanre

vancouversun.com/news/vacant-...

Urban Truth Collective: Straight Talk About The Joy Of Cities In An Age Of Disinformation — Streetsblog USA The Three Tenors of Urbanism explain their latest effort: The Urban Truth Collective.

PLEASE HELP US SHARE THIS: “We’ve let the lies be far too successful, and that’s significantly hurt our cities. No more.”

It’s our blunt NEW @usa.streetsblog.org op-ed sharing why we’ve created @urbantruth.bsky.social. SPOILER: We need to call out the lies and tell the truth much more persuasively!

Things to do in Vancouver This Weekend Events Mar 6-8 Events and fun things to do around Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley this weekend. Activities Friday, March 6 to Sunday, March 8, 2026.

Events around Vancouver this weekend

Any apology or retraction of statements that are defamatory and/or disinform have to be done in language and on platform that they were made

FtR, the Chinese language media in Vancouver have always been fantastic in covering municipal issues in my experience...The fact that this has been caught is a sign that this tactic does not work and illustrates the diversity, depth, and thought within this community.

Why my concern at the ongoing Zhou/Sim #vanpoli issue?

I believe in accountability + transparency in a multilingual & multicultural Vancouver & any elected leader cannot attempted or be allowed to linguistically encrypt defamation or disinformation

I think most Vancouver residents would agree.

The Central Lie of Prediction Markets Polymarket and Kalshi promise the wisdom of the crowds. They deliver something very different.

Wrote about the central lie of prediction markets. How they are the perfect technology for a low-trust society, simultaneously exploiting and reifying an environment in which believing the motives behind any person or action becomes harder. www.theatlantic.com/technology/2...

Farmers, farms and farmland decreasing in Metro Vancouver "Farmers are feeling the stress, the volatility, the risk ... and they're asking is it worth it to carry on?" Find out more.

"Farmers, farms and farmland decreasing in Metro Vancouver" as told by Glenda Luymes via @vancouversun.bsky.social

#vanpoli #bcpoli #vanre

vancouversun.com/news/farmers...

Showing the sitting mayor of Canada’s third largest city a printout of an offensive AI slop image to confirm whether that’s the image he saw that led him to accuse a councillor of a crime, is possibly the weirdest thing I’ve ever done at work. And I once wrote about a merkin art exhibit.

COPE Councillor Considering Next Steps After Mayor’s False Drug Accusations | The Tyee Ken Sim wrongly accused Sean Orr of dealing illegal drugs and initially let another councillor take the blame.

"COPE Councillor Considering Next Steps After Mayor's False Drug Accusations" as told by @kehyslop.bsky.social + @jenstden.bsky.social via @thetyee.ca

#vanpoli

thetyee.ca/News/2026/03...

Tumbler Ridge shooting highlights rural northern B.C.’s mental health deserts Residents reported significant barriers to accessing supports and services long before tragedy struck

Spoke w/ a Tumbler Ridge mom whose kid received psychiatric care alongside shooter in Prince George. She described Tumbler prior to the shooting as a "mental health desert," where access to supports are often long waits and hundreds of kms away.
www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic...

Really important story by Andrea here:

Here’s Where You Don’t Want to Be Living in a Quake | The Tyee Vancouver’s West End apartments face a deadly reckoning. There are solutions.

Today, mid- to high-rise concrete apartments form the backbone of the West End, and a crucial share of downtown Vancouver’s housing supply, including much of what remains affordable.

The catch? They may be dangerously susceptible to damage from earthquakes. Two experts write. 🏙️

Vancouver’s Chinese community says mayor’s apology isn’t good enough Some members of Vancouver’s Chinese community say they’re not satisfied with Mayor Ken Sim’s apology following his false claims that a city councillor distributed drugs on Christmas Day.

"Vancouver’s Chinese community says mayor’s apology isn’t good enough" as told by @isabellazavarise.bsky.social via @ctvvancouver.bsky.social

#vanpoli #bcpoli

www.ctvnews.ca/vancouver/ar...

Eat Streets: Langley City's one-way a hub of local food From casual coffee shops to fancier fare, the one-way in Langley City is one of Metro Vancouver's must-visit Eat Streets. Find out more.

"Eat Streets: Langley City's one-way a hub of local food" as told by Aleesha Harris via @vancouversun.bsky.social

vancouversun.com/feature/eat-...

In a press conference, Ken Sim says he didn’t verify the photo he was shown of Sean Orr distributing drugs, and says he apologizes

Surrey 2050 community plan projects city to outpace Vancouver in population The city's draft vision for Surrey highlights major projects and increased infrastructure to better support the growing community.

"Surrey 2050 community plan projects city to outpace Vancouver in population" as told by @sobiamoman.bsky.social

BTW: Vancouver - 12 MLAs, 7 MPs
Surrey - 10 MLAs, 5 MPs

as of 2024 Prov + 2025 Fed redistribution cycles

#vanpoli #bcpoli #vanre

vancouversun.com/news/surrey-...

B.C. budget worries advocates for seniors’ housing Homeowners who can’t afford to pay their property taxes upfront will incur a higher interest rate for deferring them

"B.C. budget worries advocates for seniors’ housing" as told by @goldinyvr.bsky.social

#bcpoli #vanpoli #vanre

GIFT LINK: www.theglobeandmail.com/gift/ee67d5a...

Douglas Todd: Lots of housing has been approved in Metro Vancouver, despite NDP charges of too much red tape Douglas Todd: B.C. government charges that excessive red tape is hampering construction are rejected by many Metro Vancouver mayors.

"Lots of housing has been approved in Metro Vancouver, despite NDP charges of too much red tape" as told by @douglastodd.bsky.social via @vancouversun.bsky.social

#bcpoli #vanpoli #vanre

vancouversun.com/opinion/colu...

City Program

Write reports that work and get read.

Consider the @sfucity.bsky.social class: "Giving Council a Piece of Your Mind: #WritingReportsThat Work" with Ann McAfee

Starting Mon, Mar 9 + Tues, Mar 10 | 1pm PST| Online | Register: www.sfu.ca/continuing-s...

No Car Free Days
No Celebration of Light Fireworks
No Dragon Boat Festival

My "free" event list for Metro Vancouver is getting smaller and smaller...

CAR FREE VANCOUVER SOCIETY

2026 Vancouver Car Free Days are cancelled.

"Because we’re scrappy, this is not goodbye, but simply see ya later."

I hope so.

#vanpoli #vanre

www.carfreevancouver.org

NYC Council pushes to ban stores from collecting biometric data Stores like Macy's and Wegmans use facial recognition software to track customers in New York City.

NYC Council pushes to ban stores from collecting biometric data gothamist.com/news/nyc-cou...

City Program

Write reports that work and get read.

Consider the @sfucity course: "Giving Council a Piece of Your Mind: #WritingReports That Work" with Ann McAfee

Starting Mon, Mar 9 + Tues, Mar 10 | 1pm PST| Online | Register: www.sfu.ca/continuing-s...

Auditor casts doubt on $6M in promised public amenities for downtown Vancouver tower Report: ‘The actions and inactions of the city mean there is significant doubt that this amount of value was delivered to the city.’

Where did it go? Is there a systemic monitoring of CACs in the CoV?

"Auditor casts doubt on $6M in promised public amenities for downtown Vancouver tower" as told by Mike Howell via @bivnews.bsky.social

#vanpoli #vanre

www.biv.com/news/economy...

Michael B Jordan and Sinners score big wins at Actor Awards The US star's best actor win for Sinners leaves the Oscars race too close to call.

Michael B Jordan and Sinners score big wins at Actor Awards

Vampire tale 'Sinners' wins top Actor Award and sets up Oscars battle Supernatural thriller "Sinners" claimed the Actor Award for best movie cast on Sunday, a victory that sets up a face-off with "One Battle After Another" for the prestigious Best Picture prize at the upcoming Oscars.

Vampire tale 'Sinners' wins top Actor Award and sets up Oscars battle reut.rs/4lmLzEJ

‘This is not an empty field’: How these 2 artists remember Chinese ancestors at Portland’s Lone Fir Cemetery A $200,000 altar-shaped art project, led by Sophia Xiao-fan Austrins and Qi You, is set to be completed by February 2027 at Block 14, a historic burial site for early Chinese immigrants.

“This is not an empty field,” and it never was. In January, Lillian Karabaic and I visited the Lone Fir Cemetery’s Block 14, which was historically the area where thousands of early Chinese immigration Portland were buried.

A big part of the authoritarian playbook is war. War takes over the news. War blots out criticism. War divides a nation’s people, subjecting those against it to being called unpatriotic. War grants leaders all sorts of emergency powers. War consumes everything else.

We mustn’t let this war do so.

Delroy Lindo Reflects On Legendary Career During Moving 'I Am An Actor' Segment Delroy Lindo Reflects On Legendary Career During Moving 'I Am An Actor' Segment

The "Sinners" star always finds a way to stay gracious and humble.