BC – Canada’s first female astronaut, Roberta Bondar, is the keynote speaker at the annual gathering of municipal representatives from across B.C. next week. She is billed as having “innovative ideas about how to navigate unchartered territory.”
An interesting choice, perhaps designed to inspire municipal leaders to think of new challenges to conquer. Before I suggest one, let me provide a bit more context on the meeting itself.
Inside B.C.‘s political beltway, the Union of British Columbia Municipalities Convention is a pretty big deal. In addition to the many municipal leaders who take the time to go, provincial and federal cabinet ministers are in the crowd and at the podium. B.C.‘s premier and the leader of the opposition usually make speeches with messages relevant to local government.
Networking is high on the agenda. How many conferences can boast three receptions in one night hosted by groups as diverse as the B.C. Government, the Chinese consulate, and CUPE? Daytime networking events include sightseeing excursions: This year, delegates can choose from trips to Port Metro Vancouver; the Sea to Sky corridor; Gastown and Chinatown; Lonsdale Quay; and an Indian Arm lunch cruise.
Most of the policy workshops are pretty standard fare, including “Building and Protecting Green Communities” and “Moving Forward with First Nations.” The “Marijuana, Legalisation, and Access” session might, however, raise a few eyebrows. Also of note on the policy side is the resolutions that come to the floor from different municipalities. If a resolution gets significant support, it sends a message to the other levels of government. For example, Cowichan Valley wants the provincial government to raise corporate taxes and give the money to municipalities. North Saanich is proposing a resolution to eliminate the Municipal Auditor General.
Now back to the idea of a new challenge for local leaders to reflect on this week. You don’t get more local than local business. But the “unchartered territory” between the two planets of local business and local government is a growing problem in B.C. that needs attention, the kind of attention that an event like the UBCM could create next year with support from its delegates.
Small businesses are responsible for over half of the private sector jobs in B.C. They make our communities livable, providing valuable services and amenities, supporting local minor league sports teams, and hiring and training local youth in first jobs. They stabilize communities by protecting jobs too, being far less quick to lay people off during recessions than their larger counterparts. Yet, when small business owners are asked how confident they are that their municipality is creating an environment that supports small business, only a third (32 per cent) expressed that they were “somewhat confident”, with another third (35 per cent) saying “not very confident”, and the last third (29 per cent) answering “not confident at all.” Houston, we have a problem. How about a resolution to put more focus on local business on next year’s agenda? A panel titled “Local government policy innovation to help local business thrive” could work. Langford could share its popular move to simplify its business license to a one-time application rather than annual renewal. The session could encourage business owners and their associations to bring new ideas forward. It could tap into municipal politicians who have small business backgrounds. It could grapple with the very real problem that many small businesses are not finding their local communities affordable anymore.
Networking has value. Being inspired by astronauts has value. So too does focusing on creating the conditions for small businesses to thrive. It is time to navigate this unchartered territory.
– Laura Jones is Executive Vice President of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business. She can be reached at laura.jones@cfib.ca. Follow her on Twitter @CFIBideas.