Renters Advisory Committee

The mandate of the Renters Advisory Committee is to advise Council on strategic City priorities relating to renters, to monitor and respond to the impacts of provincial and federal legislation affecting tenants and to advise Council on enhancing access and inclusion for renters in developing City policy and civic life.

Meetings update

Meetings may be convened by electronic means as authorized by Section 14.14 of the Procedure By-law. Advisory Bodies may elect to conduct their meetings in person, by electronic means, or as a hybrid of the two.

If attending in person, please continue to respect the personal space of others.

Virtual meetings use Cisco WebEx Events. No software download is required. In the event of a virtual meeting, use the link below to view the meeting live through your web browser.

A link to join the live meeting broadcast is posted 24 hours in advance of the meeting.

Next meeting: September 6, 2023

Join the meeting

Online meeting password: TBD

Join by phone (audio only)

1-604-646-8916
1-855-699-3239 (Canada - toll free)

Access code: 12345

Consent - Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy

To view or participate in meetings virtually, you consent to the collection, use, and disclosure of your personal information outside Canada as described below. The City of Vancouver collects your personal information in accordance with section 26(c) of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act for purposes of organizing and administering advisory body meetings. For virtual advisory body meetings, your contact information will be shared with the City’s web conferencing provider, Cisco WebEx. Information submitted to WebEx will be stored on servers in the United States and may be accessed in the United States or internationally for technical support purposes. If you have questions about the collection of this information, please contact the director of access to information and privacy by emailing privacy@vancouver.ca or mailing a letter to 453 West 12th Avenue, Vancouver, BC, V5Y 1V4.

Following the meeting, minutes will be posted online and can be found in the ‘Meetings’ tab below.

Mandate and scope

Advises Council and staff on strategic City priorities relating to renters including initiatives aimed at protecting renters and existing rental housing, creating new rental housing, and providing renter-focused services
Advises Council and staff on enhancing access and inclusion for renters to fully participate in City services and civic life
Considers the impacts of provincial and federal legislation affecting renters and provides information to Council and staff
Works collaboratively with counterparts from other civic agencies to identify opportunities for joint action on issues of mutual interest
Works co-operatively with external agencies and groups whose activities affect constituent communities
Engages in outreach to disseminate information and encourage participation from constituent communities

Meetings and administrative procedures

The Renters Advisory Committee holds six regular meetings per year, in addition to working sessions generally scheduled during intervening months throughout the year.
Type A Advisory Committees may, at their discretion, establish sub-committees focused on relevant topics of interest, non-members may participate in sub-committees and attend regular meetings if invited.
A member who is absent from more than two consecutive regular meetings without a leave of absence is deemed to have resigned.

Remuneration

Type A Advisory Committee members and alternate members are eligible to receive reimbursement for certain meeting-related expenses.
Non-member subcommittee participants are not eligible to receive reimbursement.
A light meal will be provided to Type A Advisory Committee members attending in-person regular meetings held over lunch or dinner hours.

Eligibility

Persons appointed to a Type A Advisory Committee shall meet the following essential criteria:

Not be employed by the City of Vancouver
Live or work in Vancouver, or have a significant body of experience with issues related to the mandate of the advisory body in Vancouver
Have connections to relevant communities, groups, and/or organizations in Vancouver
Be able to demonstrate relevant experience or knowledge, abilities, and skills related to the mandate of the advisory body
Be able to work in a team environment with intercultural sensitivity

Term limit

Beginning in 2019, no member of the public shall serve for more than eight consecutive years on the same Type A Advisory Committee. A former member is eligible for reappointment after one year of non-membership.

Full guidelines

Renters Advisory Committee Full Terms of Reference (155 KB)

Membership

Appointments end December 31, 2024

Kawa Ada
Travis Barker
Eva Ciesielska
Laurel Cowan
Margareta Dovgal
Nicolas Poppell
Scott Robinson
Kyle Simunovic
Hannah Thomson
James Tod
Spencer van Vloten
Colleen Wickstrom

Liaisons

Council Liaison: Councillor Fry and Councillor Montague
Staff Liaison: Graham Anderson, Planner, Housing Policy

Terms and Membership Composition

Persons appointed to a Type A Advisory Committee shall meet the following essential criteria:

Not be employed by the City of Vancouver;
Live or work in Vancouver, or have a significant body of experience with issues related to the mandate of the advisory body in Vancouver;
Have connections to relevant communities, groups, and/or organizations in Vancouver;
Be able to demonstrate relevant experience or knowledge, abilities and skills related to the mandate of the advisory body.
Be able to work in a team environment with intercultural sensitivity.

Composition:

Up to 12 members of the public (quorum is a majority of appointed members);
Up to 2 non-voting Council liaisons (appointed by Mayor);
Up to 2 non-voting staff liaisons (appointed by City Manager);
1 non-voting Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation Commissioner liaison and/or staff liaison (optional);
1 non-voting Vancouver School Board Trustee liaison (optional);
1 non-voting Vancouver Public Library staff liaison (optional);
1 non-voting Vancouver Police Department staff liaison (optional).

Length of term:

Term ends immediately before the first Monday after November 1 in the year of a general local election. However, no regular meeting shall be held between the last day of the nomination period and general voting day.
Members are appointed until December 31, 2024, at which point appointments are automatically renewable to the end of the term, and recruitment shall be conducted to fill any vacancies arising.
Beginning in 2019, no member of the public shall serve in more than eight consecutive years on the same Type A Advisory Committee. A former member is eligible for reappointment after one year of non-membership.

All Regular Meetings are open to the public.

In addition to the regular meetings listed here, the committee also meets several times per year for informal working sessions. Please contact the Meeting Coordinator for more information.

2023 meetings, agendas, and minutes

Meeting date	Agenda	Minutes
July 5, 2023	Agenda	Minutes
September 6, 2023	Agenda	Minutes
November 8, 2023	Agenda	Minutes