VANCOUVER—With the city steeped in campaign messaging ahead of the Oct. 20 election, the Green Party of Vancouver announced its housing platform on Thursday morning, echoing key points of other progressive plans.

Standing before city hall, party candidates announced seven actions they would enact if elected into office.

“We have a city divided over how to accomplish changing directions. And that is what is needed,” said incumbent councillor Adriane Carr. “We have to be more bold. We have to ask more from developers.”

Objectives include: recognizing the right to housing in the Vancouver Charter, defining affordability relative to local incomes, setting a citywide goal of 50 per cent below-market-rate housing, launching a city-funded city-built housing program on city-owned land, using conditional zoning to suppress land speculation and enacting zoning changes to allow secondary and tertiary suites.

To pursue affordable home ownership and rentals, the Greens plan to follow the Whistler strategy of resident-worker housing, which achieves 50 per cent of units in all multi-unit residential strata rezonings as resident-worker housing that sell at “about half the market rate,” according to a release.

Carr noted that this “bold action” would require asking more of developers — not increased city spending. She was adamant that the party is not tied to developer interests.

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A list of campaign donations is available on the Greens of Vancouver website and it is updated to Sept. 24.

Both the left and right have been fractured in the lead-up to the election and for months the left-of-centre parties were posturing to endorse a unity mayoral candidate. Carr was positioned to be that person — but after carefully weighing the decision, she decided not to risk losing her council seat in May.

But the race has changed since then — though several independent candidates were vying for the role. Both OneCity and the Vancouver Labour District Council have endorsed independent mayoral candidate, Kennedy Stewart.

Shortly after the housing announcement on Thursday morning, Stewart tweeted: “Like my housing platform, the Vancouver Greens’ plan addresses speculation while building homes for people who live and work here. Voters deserve a city hall that works together to make Vancouver affordable for everyone. As mayor, I would be proud to help deliver on this plan.”

Meanwhile, Shauna Sylvester — an independent mayoral candidate who was present at the announcement — tweeted: “Impressive housing platform announced by the Vancouver Greens today at city hall. 50% below market housing.”

Carr said there were elements of platforms that the party sees “commonality” in and that would be addressed more leading up to election day. She highlighted the need for collaboration.

The party is running four candidates for city council and three candidates each for both park board and school board.

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Green council candidate Pete Fry said the party believes in “consensus” and having a potential four Green candidates elected to council would offer “enough momentum to really push through policies.”

“We are a participatory democracy,” he said. “We hope to see a progressive mix on council that we can work with.”

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