Daniel Fontaine, B.A., ICD.D

This is a special Election Edition of For the Record with guest Coun. Paul Minhas. The podcast looks back at some of the campaign commitments made during the election that could have an impact on the streets, homes and business of New Westminster residents.

Why did Richmond-Queensborough come out on top when it came to campaign commitments? Why was there crickets in Burnaby-New West and New West-Coquitlam ridings? We explore and analyze what could be behind this phenomenon.

The City of New West declared a climate crisis, yet did you know that local residents are not eligible for all BC Hydro programs to reduce energy consumption? For example, New West residents are not able to take advantage of a $5000 grant program to install solar panels and battery storage. Is that fair? Will a motion coming to Council soon help to resolve this inequity?

A number of parents in New West are fuming mad with City Council after it passed up on the opportunity to provide long-term stable funding to expand the popular Walking School Bus Program. We explore what led to the Parent Advisory Councils sending an extraordinary letter to Mayor and Council last week. But will it lead to a positive outcome?

Lastly, we provide a hint of some BIG changes coming to this podcast. A BIG announcement will be coming on Oct 25th regarding the future of For the Record with Daniel Fontaine. Tune in for a few hints as to what the change might be.

If you enjoy this podcast, be sure to tell family, friends and your work colleagues. That’s how we keep growing the audience each week. If you want to listen to the podcast, it’s available on all major platforms including Spotify and Apple Podcast.

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Did the popular political podcast Hotel Pacifico just give a BIG shoutout to Queensborough? Did the hosts really link a $5M Conservative campaign commitment to upgrade Ryall Park to hospital closures in Merritt? How so?

We explore the reasons why provincial political parties are falling all over themselves to capture the hearts and minds of Queensborough while literally ignoring the two other New West ridings.

It’s official! New West taxpayers are one step closer to shelling out $90,000 to a BIG law firm to “Sue BIG Oil”. But based on the reaction of numerous callers to the Jill Bennett Show it’s clear how out of touch Community First politicians are with their constituents. Special guest Coun. Paul Minhas breaks down why the “Sue BIG Oil” motion is going over like a lead balloon with local residents.

New West Council voted unanimously to support a motion calling upon the next Premier to conduct a governance review of Metro Vancouver. About time! Let’s see what the next Premier does with that request.

A BIG “New West” sign on Pier Park took one BIG step forward this week when a motion by Coun. Paul Minhas got approved by a vote of 5-2. Will Tourism New Westminster be able to secure the funding and city approvals to get the sign on the waterfront by next summer?

The Queensborough Bridge is jammed during rush hour often cutting off the people living in Queensborough from the rest of the mainland. The bridge backup also plays havoc on 20th Street. A motion got approved this week that might help to eventually relieve some of that carbon-inducing congestion.

You’ll also want to hear an interview from the Jas Johal Show on CKNW featuring yours truly. The topics include Sue BIG Oil and Metro Vancouver governance.

If you like this podcast, be sure to tell family, friends and colleagues all about For the Record with Daniel Fontaine.

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It’s another great episode of For the Record this week with special guest Coun. Paul Minhas. We open up the podcast with a discussion on an obscure utility set up in 2016 which is owned by New West taxpayers called BridgeNet. We discuss how it will bleed another $677,000 again this year. Have we got your attention yet?

There is a downloading dilemma going on in New West and throughout British Columbia. The City of New West is taking on responsibilities for programs and services that should be administered and/or paid for by senior orders of government. A staff report coming soon is about to provide all of the details regarding how much this is costing New West residents and businesses each year.

A NWP apology leads to a curious discovery on the Community First website. Some of the wording on their site has quietly been changed to strike out references to the BC NDP. But why so?

Conspiracy theories abound as a select few ‘keyboard warriors’ talking to themselves in their echo chamber make false assertions about who was planning a townhall forum at the New West SkyTrain station. What are the facts? Just who was organizing the townhall forum that suddenly got cancelled with little advance notice? Time for the facts, please!

Host Daniel Fontaine is interviewed by Mike Smyth from CKNW about skyrocketing tax increases being proposed by Metro Vancouver – our unelected, unaccountable and increasingly expensive regional government.

CKNW’s Jas Johal Show also invited Fontaine on to the podcast to talk Metro Vancouver and a proposal to expand the Pattullo Bridge to six lanes. Incredibly, Fontaine does a policy flip flop and agrees to the expansion – but with a caveat! A pretty big caveat!

PS we even have a special Sesame Street appearance this week!

Be sure to listen in and tell your friends and family if you enjoy the podcast. That’s how we continue to grow our audience and spread the word. This podcast is available on all major platforms including Spotify and Apple Podcast.

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