View Royal is taking a stand against provincial legislation it thinks will "centralize power, strip local governments of decision-making authority and diminish public accountability."
In a letter sent to the Goldstream Gazette on May 14, the town expressed its opposition to the Infrastructure Projects Streamlining Act and the Municipalities Enabling and Validating Act.
"History proves that strong local governments lead to thriving communities. British Columbia has benefited from empowered municipalities that understand local needs best. But year after year, we've watched authority shrink while financial pressures grow, downloading responsibilities without the resources to handle them. If this pattern continues, local governments like the Town of View Royal will be left managing crises instead of shaping the future,” said Coun. Damian Kowalewich.
B.C. tabled the Infrastructure Projects Streamlining Act on May 1. If it passes, the new piece of legislation will allow the province to speed up the approval of major public-sector capital projects, such as schools, hospitals and post-secondary facilities, through an expedited permitting procedure and environmental assessment process.
“At a time of uncertainty caused by Donald Trump’s tariffs, it’s more important than ever that we create more good-paying jobs by delivering the critical infrastructure projects people need – faster,” Premier David Eby said in a May 1 release. “We are building a record number of new schools, hospitals and major transportation projects across B.C., but too many others face unnecessary and costly delays. This legislation is designed to speed up permitting and approvals to get shovels in the ground more quickly on priority projects.”
View Royal, however, claims the bill "grants the provincial cabinet unilateral power to designate infrastructure projects as 'provincially significant,' allowing them to bypass municipal planning, override local bylaws, and fast-track approvals without consultation."
The letter adds that the Municipalities Enabling and Validating Act, if passed, could be used to validate actions that might have been outside of the scope of the Local Government Act or other relevant legislation.
Overall, the town is concerned these bills could undermine the authority of local councils to make planning decisions, shift financial and infrastructure burdens to local taxpayers, eliminate meaningful community input on developments and weaken democratic oversight by bypassing locally elected officials.
“These titles are designed to suggest empowerment and efficiency, but their actual impact is to centralize power, strip local governments of decision-making authority, and diminish public accountability," Mayor Sid Tobias said in the letter. "They are, in effect, the opposite of what their names suggest.”
The Goldstream Gazette has reached out to the Ministry of Infrastructure for comment.
