Surrey North Delta Leader, January 28, 2014

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Tuesday January 28, 2014

Serving Surrey and North Delta www.surreyleader.com

TransLink referendum hits

GRIDLOCK Todd Stone

With less than 10 months to go until voters face a controversial question on how to fund transportation improvements, ‘chaos’ reigns

Pick transport priorities for referendum – and raise property taxes, says B.C. transportation minister by Tom Fletcher METRO VANCOUVER mayors need to agree

on new road, bridge and transit projects so taxpayers know what the price tag will be when they vote in a referendum, Transportation Minister Todd Stone said Thursday. That referendum will be imposed by legislation the B.C. government will present in the spring session of the legislature, and will be held along with municipal elections on Nov. 15, Stone told reporters.

The TransLink mayors’ council met Wednesday and rejected Stone’s proposal that they raise more money from property taxes to avoid the referendum that Premier Christy Clark promised in last year’s B.C. election campaign. “They could increase property tax tomorrow and fund a huge part of the expansion plan if they wanted to,” Stone said. “I think it’s important for people to know that.”

See STONE / Page 4

Mayors reject referendum responsibility – and won’t hike property taxes by Jeff Nagel THE REGION’S mayors have shot back

at Transportation Minister Todd Stone, insisting the province and not they are responsible for the failure so far to map out a referendum question on raising more money for TransLink. Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson was among those Wednesday who expressed disappointment that Stone has framed the impasse as one

Editorial 6 Letters 7 Life 12 Classifieds 16

al u n n hA t 12

Dianne Watts

stemming from the mayors’ failure to decide what should be done. “Mayors have been very unified for five years now,” Robertson said. “All of this current chaos is generated by the province. We’ve done everything we could do to put forward concrete suggestions and be constructive and advocate for more transit in the region.” See TAX / Page 5

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