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ENTERTAINMENT ISSUES & IDEAS ONLINE SPECIAL As You Like It Alternative healing Sunny pumpkins Complex sets and props Pet Reiki, yoga and hollistic South Vancouer pumpkin patch transform a Sharespeake classic practices are new trends see's more business thanks to the at Studio 58. P4 claiming to help heal. P7 sun. langaravoice.ca APER NEWSPYEAR THE of 2015 E nd PLAC 2 2016 PRODUCED BY LANGARA JOURNALISM STUDENTS | WWW.LANGARAVOICE.CA OCTOBER 12 , 2017 • VOL. 49 NO. 1• VANCOUVER, B.C. No space at family A toke for your vote place As South Vancouver densifies, community spots become crowded By ANA ROSE WALKEY rowing development but lack of affordable hous- ing and childcare is caus- Ging overcrowding at the South Vancouver Family Place and other community spaces in the area, ac- cording to community service workers. As South Vancouver grows, fam- ily places, community centres and neighbourhood houses are expe- riencing more overcrowding than usual. Kim Berger, executive director Mary Jean “Watermelon” Dunsdon addresses supporters with a megaphone at a campaign rally the Wise Hall & Lounge on Oct. 2. TREVOR NAULT PHOTO at South Vancouver Family Place, posted a notice on their website this September Vancouver's 'weed diva' is using cannabis to fill ballots explaining how people could By TREVOR NAULT “You have to rally the troops, “We talk a lot about canna- Tristan Risk, a supporter who help decrease but you also have to entertain those bis,” said campaign manager Dana attended the rally, said Dunsdon’s overcrowding at he has a broad platform. Yet troops,” Dunsdon, a well-known Larsen. “But we’ve also got a pretty platform has a lot to offer, even be- the centre. Vancouver City Council marijuana advocate, said of the broad platform.” yond pot. Some of the hopeful Mary Jean “Wa- night’s festivities at Wise Hall & Larsen, a cannabis activist and “She’s running under the Sen- suggestions termelon” Dunsdon has Lounge. founding director of the Vancou- sible BC campaign, and while their Kim Berger included lim- narrowed in on one main strategy Throughout her cam- ver Dispensary Network, platform is largely cannabis, sen- EXECUTIVE iting visits up to lure voters and supporters: can- paign, Dunsdon has taken said the Oct. 14 sible relates to all things sensible,” DIRECTOR AT SVFP S to three hours nabis. aim at the region’s “no fun byelec- she said, pointing to the campaign’s daily and only Her platform includes free pub- city” image, driving around in solutions for the housing and opi- twice a week, not bringing school- lic transit, affordable housing, harm her pink and green tour bus, oid crises. aged children and visiting other reduction and the easing of rules painted like a watermelon. The Vancouver City community centres and play- surrounding cannabis dispensaries. “Cannabis definitely inspired tion is a Council by-election grounds. But what drew in the crowds to her this group to get together,” said the huge opportunity. was triggered in July “We never want to turn anybody Oct. 2 rally in East Vancouver was Sensible Vancouver candidate, who “No one else is talking about when Vision Vancouver away,” she said. “I think there's def- the free joints and edibles, glowing acknowledges she’s in bed with the cannabis dispensaries and how councillor Geoff Meggs gave up initely a greater need for the service hula hoops and burlesque dancers, cannabis industry though denies to deal with them, and really, the his seat to take on a new position … Our community is changing with smoking paraphernalia avail- her party is running a single-issue many benefits they’re bringing into as Premier John Horgan’s chief of drastically in terms of demograph- able at several tables. campaign. Vancouver,” he said. staff. ic.” A denser population, she said, means more residents in tighter living spaces who want to meet and spend time with people outside their homes. LSU fails to capture audience “Very large-scale city develop- ments do provide public amenities such as daycare and community Turnout a flop at candidates read from what they had could be disqualified if the rest of fice said that LSU policy is to put centres,” said David Rawsthorne, a posted online days earlier. The floor the hopefuls were not given an up election posters, and if there civil engineer for the City of Van- was then opened for questions, equal amount of space in the paper. were none, they had been taken couver. “But the small to medium candidate forum though none of Only half the can- down by mistake. ones don't.” the students nearby didates listed on the Gurlal Singh, student representa- Melissa Needleman, secretary at By PERRIN GRAUER took advantage of LSU website attend- tive on Langara's education coun- South Vancouver Neighbourhood the opportunity. Listen to our ed. Several candidates cil, was unconvinced. House, said she has also noticed a ast week's all-candidates Speaking after noted that the LSU’s “I was a little bit disappointed problem. She believes it is due to forum at the Langara Stu- the event, candi- LSU election standard approach has with that excuse," Singh said. "I the fact these community spaces are dents' Union went largely dates mostly agreed podcast at been to self-promote came to know [of the forum] very non-profit and, therefore, cheaper unnoticed by dozing and lunching the LSU needs only during orienta- late and if I came to know very late, L langaravoice.ca than using the city’s resources. bodies, which, according to those fresh strategies to tion week. The rest it means the only people who come Berger said the notice was not running in the election, showed promote student of the year, said one to attend will be the candidates or meant to deter visitors but to help a communication breakdown be- engagement with candidate, the union random people (by accident)." manage a growing problem. SVFP tween the students and their union. the union. The is mostly invisible and Jeannie Bates, chief returning of- is working to make no cost, low Each of the 10 candidates were Voice cannot iden- can be tremendously ficer who oversees the student elec- barrier programs more accessible allotted a minute and a half to tify individual candidates because difficult to reach. tion, said in an email the campaign for families in the future. speak to their platforms. Eight LSU campaign protocols state they A clerk at the student union of- schedule is set in August. 2 THE VOICE | THURSDAY, OCT. 12, 2017 | EDITOR SYDNEY MORTON Atlarge Locals blow off 'Bullying' taints voting school board in Port Moody race Hunter Madsen won a byelection Sept. 30 in which 12 per cent of voters cast a ballot By DANIEL DADI-CANTARINO newly elected Port Moody city councillor believes the low voter turnout in theA byelection he won last month Vision Vancouver candidate Ken Clement, was the first aboriginal person elected in the City of Vancouver and is running for re-election. SUBMITTED PHOTO shows that many residents aren’t interested in local government. Hunter Madsen, who ran as an independent candidate, won 1,277 Candidates in Vancouver byelection hope for fresh start votes in a race that saw only 12 per cent of eligible voters cast a ballot By CASS LUCKE a toxic work environment existed at leagues. Sept 30. Madsen replaces former “The best way to ensure the issues the school board. NPA candidate Fraser Ballan- councillor Rick Glumac, who won former Vision Vancou- are dealt with is to work together In the fall of 2016, then-educa- tyne was on the previous board, but, a seat with the NDP in the May ver school trustee cam- cooperatively along with his colleagues, denies he provincial election. paigning to get back on for students, “ It's one thing to was a part of the bullying. “I ran into some people when I the school board says if parents, teach- “It's one thing to rationalize your was door knocking who said, ‘Your elected he will work to ensure there ers and stake- rationalize your behaviour behaviour at the beginning, but for candidacy sounds good but no, I’m isA a better relationship between holders in the at the beginning, but them to not take responsibility for not voting,’" Madsen told The Voice. trustees and the district's senior district to make for them to not take what has happened is shameful,” This Saturday staff. sure the needs of Ballantyne said when asked about (Oct. 14), Van- Ken Clement, a former two-term our district are responsibility for what has Vision Vancouver’s redacted confi- couverites will trustee who failed to get elected in being met by all happened is shameful. ” dential version of Goldner’s report vote in a byelec- the 2014 civic election, is one of 19 parties so none they released on March 7, 2016. tion for a new city candidates running in the Oct. 14 of these accu- — FRASER BALLANTYNE The byelection was called after councillor and a byelection for one of the nine spots sations are put NPA CANDIDATE councillor Geoff Meggs resigned to new nine-person available on school board. forward again,” take a job as Premier John Horgan’s school board. In the last term of the board, Clement told chief of staff. Nine candidates HUNTER MADSEN trustees were accused of bullying The Voice. Horgan's government later de- are running for COUNCILLOR IN senior staff. The accusations Clement is re- tion minister Mike Bernier fired cided to include a school board race council and 19 for PORT MOODY Clement was not a member of ferring to were detailed in a report the entire nine-member board for on the ballot.