news // no. 4

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> The art of today can be the tourism of tomorrow

Katie Czenczek
News Editor

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Warne: or not you like public art, it
goes without saying that in some
way it has impacted your life.

On November 21 from 6:30 to 8:30
pm, Douglas College hosted an Urban
Challenges Forum. Held in Room 2201, the
theme for this debate was whether public
art should be government funded or not,
and what the implications of public art are
if it is paid for by governing bodies.

The event was moderated by
Darcy Cutler, a faculty member in the
Department of Philosophy and Humanities
at Douglas College. He gave the opening
welcome and territorial acknowledgment.

Following Cutler was another
Douglas College faculty member, Dr.
Julian Brooks. Brooks opened up the
conversation by presenting famous statues
found throughout the world and giving
them greater context. Brooks focused on
public art that arose out of the Socialist
movement in Eastern Europe during the

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Second World War. Some countries—
Serbia was used an example—choose to
commemorate those statues to this day,
while other like Hungary took them down,
he said.

“In Hungary, there was this move to
get rid of all of the Communist statues.
Really the difference here is that in
Hungary, they had socialism imposed upon
them after the Red Army defeated the
Germans in 1945.”

Brooks also went on to discuss how
tourists flock to these monuments. He
moved southwards in his presentation by
then focusing on two different cities—
Athens, Greece and Skopje, Macedonia.

“Athens, we have the Agora, the Stoa,
Classical statues, striking columns; this
is beauty, authenticity, symmetry, good
taste,” he said. “The very genesis of Western
civilization. When we compare it to Skopje,
not so much.”

He gave a brief history about
Skopje’s transformation in 2014, when the
nationalistic government led by Nikola
Gruevski funded Classical-inspired statues

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to be built all over the Macedonian city.
The most famous of these statues is one
of Alexander the Great in the middle of a
major courtyard.

“There were those who supported
the project,” he said. “The government
argued that the project was a much-needed
revamp of the dreary socialist architecture,
would give people something to be proud
of in their city, and attract tourism.”

The fallout of the project was that it
cost 650 million euros to create all of the
statues, for which the government only
originally budgeted 80 million at the start
of the project.

“That’s a lot for one of Europe’s
smallest countries with the population of
the Lower Mainland,” Brooks said.

After Brooks finished his presentation,
City Counsellor for New Westminster Mary
Trentadue spoke about the benefits of
public art. She said that public art is easily
accessible to everyone.

“The things that’re important about
public art to me is that it’s free,” she said.
“Tt’s available to all people, regardless of

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theotherpress.ca

‘Wow Westminster’ by José Resende via NewWestCity.ca

in.

their age, demographic, culture, and socio-
economic status. Public art reflects who
we are as a society through the lens of an
artist.’

She also highlighted some of
the public art initiatives that the
New Westminster government has
implemented, such as the WOW
Westminster art installation in
Westminster Pier Park. Trentadue went on
to talk about the controversy about that art
installation and how people have given her
mixed results on the installation.

“Not everyone believes that we should
be spending public money on public art,”
she said. “I’m not convinced that we will
ever be able to convince those who are
against public art that it’s a good idea for
any community.”

Following both Brooks and
Trentadue’s talks, audience members were
invited to ask either speaker questions
about art before the event wrapped up.

The next Urban Challenges Forum will
focus on the topic of environmental justice
on January 23 of next year.

Government introduces ride-
sharing legislation

» New laws not effective until next year

 

Tania Arora
Staff Reporter

 

Rew home late at night after
great show on the Granville strip
and planning to take a cab?

British Columbia’s government
introduced the much-awaited ride-
hailing legislation on November 19
with the Passenger Transportation
Amendment Act. People in the
province may expect to catch an Uber
of Lyft as early as next year.

Claire Trevena, Minister of
Transportation and Infrastructure,
said in a government press release that
she wants the new legislation to be
specifically designed for the province.

“This legislation is a milestone
that gets ride-hailing right for British
Columbia. My priority is to make
sure British Columbians are safer
on the roads, and together, with the
committee, we will make sure we
get the options British Columbians
want, while making sure their rides
are safe. These priorities are shared
with all parties, and I look forward to
receiving the recommendations of the
committee.”

Upon the implementation of the
bill, the Passenger Transportation

Board (PTB) will determine and
control the fare and the number
of vehicles running on the road in
particular areas.

Ride-sharing will make the life
of Vancouverites much easier, since
taking taxis has been an everyday
struggle for many.

An employee of a riding-sharing
company—who wished to remain
unnamed so the information he
disclosed does not interfere with
his job—said in an interview with
the Other Press that BC ride-hailing
services have struggled to keep up
with the need.

“The demand has been excessive,
which pushed the government to
pass the legislation,” he said. “The
taxi services are working on the
entire system so that the customers
do not face any glitches while the
product is out there. App testing is
being done on a regular basis. The
background check[s] of all the drivers
are being carried out for the safety of
passengers.”

The whole industry is
competitive, and the government and
taxi service companies have all been
readying themselves for the blow.
Ride-sharing drivers will require a
Class 4 license. The PTB is currently

facing a shortage of drivers as the
license takes time to obtain and
everyone needs to go through medical
and criminal checks. The vehicles
have to be fully covered by insurance,
which is what causing much of the
delay right now. No deadline has been
set so far but the new legislation is
likely to come into effect in 2019.

The employee also said that his
company is in the middle of the hiring
process.

“We are hiring drivers right now,”
he said. “It is a lengthy process as it
involves screening their experience,
medical history, criminal record, and
background. It is essential to ensure
the passengers are safe, which is our
biggest concern. Everything is being
worked upon.”

He said that the legislation has
been needed fora long time and will
be avery welcome improvement for
British Columbians.

“We see the struggle of people
every day during the peak time. It was
a regular stress for passengers.”

The bill requires changes to
be made to several existing bills
including the Insurance (Vehicle)
Act, Passenger Transportation Act,
Commercial Transport Act, and Motor
Vehicle Act.