Episode 26: Mayor Harvie about to get the boot, head-to-head with Garth Mullins & State of the City address

In this week's edition of For the Record, we cover off a number of interesting issues making news in the Royal City. A motion coming to city council later this month regarding decriminalization is sure to trigger a debate. It has already generated some media interest and you can listen to an interesting head-to-head discussion on CKNW's Mike Smyth Show featuring Garth Mullins of VANDU (Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users) and For the Record host Daniel Fontaine. The Jill Bennett Show on CKNW also had a segment on this topic as well as the Canucks on Columbia event proposal. New Westminster's record on planting new trees and our overall tree canopy are also discussed this week. How have we been doing when compared to other Metro Vancouver cities when it comes to our tree canopy? You might be surprised to find out! The Mayor also held his annual State of the City address at a private adults only venue. Anyone under 19 was not permitted, nor were individuals who couldn't afford the ticket price or had no identification. Was this the right place to deliver this critical public address?Councillor Paul Minhas makes an appearance for our regular 'Council Roundup" as we review some of the major topics discussed in the chamber this week. The focus of "The Way I See It" opinion piece is Metro Vancouver Chair Greg Harvie. He is also the Mayor of Delta and this week he was provided with termination notice from his council. They are revoking his appointment to Metro Vancouver which means that effective July 1st he will no longer be the chair. During that local debate he indicated he needed to stay on a few more weeks to fulfill his duties which included an all expense paid trip to Amsterdam. Will Metro Vancouver still allow him to take that trip given that he'll be stepping down as chair soon?It's a packed podcast with lots of great information. If you enjoy it, be sure to tell family, friends and colleagues!