Economic and business-friendly policies, taxes as well as affordable housing emerged as the top issues for BC business owners who were polled about the municipal elections.
The poll was conducted by Mustel Group, which surveyed BC business owners for BCBiusiness magazine in July.
“As a business owner, what do you see as the most pressing issue in the upcoming municipal elections?” was the question the polling group sent to over 300 businesses.
The responses were then filtered to focus on businesses with one or more staff.
Among the 176 respondents who employ staff, the top issues were economic/business-friendly policies (20.5 percent overall), taxes (19.3 percent overall) and affordable housing (14.2 percent overall).
“Affordable housing is always an issue because it’s an issue for hiring people as well,” Mustel told the BCBusiness magazine, where the story was first reported.
Evi Mustel, who conducted the survey, told BCBusiness the small base size make the results a ‘bit spotty’ when broken down by region, but added that priorities do vary from one area to another.
“The economic climate is much more of an issue outside the Metro Vancouver region, whereas transportation, housing, which are very much related, are more of an issue in the Metro Vancouver area,” Mustel said.
What she found interesting was the lack of concern about the Kinder Morgan pipeline expansion, she told the magazine.
“In all our polling, it’s not showing up very much as a big issue,” Mustel says. “It could be also [a feeling that] we need this for economic development.”
Economic/business-friendly policies (issuing of permits, applications)
Metro Vancouver: 17.2%
Other B.C.: 27.8%
Taxes
Metro Vancouver: 21.3%
Other B.C.: 14.8%
Affordable housing (empty houses, foreign owner tax, etc.)
Metro Vancouver: 17.2%
Other B.C.: 7.4%
Transportation (public transit expansion, traffic congestion)
Metro Vancouver: 16.4%
Other B.C.: 5.6%
Overdevelopment (loss of Agricultural Land Reserve, densification, etc.)
Metro Vancouver: 10.7%
Other B.C: 3.7%
Crime (gang violence, public safety, fentanyl/opioid crisis, etc.)
Metro Vancouver: 4.9%
Other B.C.: 11.1%
Affordable commercial real estate
Metro Vancouver: 4.1%
Other B.C.: 9.3%
Kinder Morgan pipeline expansion
Metro Vancouver: 4.1%
Other B.C.: 7.4%
Environment (expanding recycling, renewable energy, etc.)
MetroVancouver: 3.3%
Other B.C.: 3.7%
Welfare and social issues
Metro Vancouver: 0.8%
Other B.C.: 3.7%
Dave Colwell says
Business friendly taxes, fine, but only if they are really good for the people. To give tax relief to those businesses that are doing very well beyond that which such a business should benefit beyond normal expectation then, NO! Our town should not be in the business of proving inordinate luxury to speculators who would not receive it under ordinary norms. They should have to prove to the Community that their benefits complement their service.