Mayor Hurley charts Burnaby’s path forward

Speaking to a packed house at his seventh State of the City Address on Monday, Burnaby Mayor Mike Hurley outlined Burnaby’s vision for economic growth, civic pride, and infrastructure renewal during a luncheon hosted by the Burnaby Board of Trade at the Delta Hotel Conference Centre.

Amid rising economic uncertainty, Hurley announced the creation of the Mayor’s Task Force on Burnaby Economic Growth and Resilience, an initiative aimed at bolstering the city’s competitiveness.

"First and foremost, success means getting the best minds in the room to talk about different ideas," Hurley told the Burnaby Beacon following his address. “More than attracting new businesses, we need to ensure our existing businesses are heard and supported. This task force will be grounded in that goal.”

The new task force, scheduled to launch in early 2026, will align with major policy updates already underway, including Burnaby’s Official Community Plan, "Burnaby 2050," and the updated Economic Development Strategy.

Hurley also introduced the city’s new “Be Burnaby” campaign, highlighted by a slick promotional video aimed at nurturing civic pride while showcasing Burnaby to potential investors.

“It’s an internal campaign for residents to develop pride in their city,” Hurley said. “But it’s also meant to show businesses beyond our borders what Burnaby has to offer. We need to keep putting our best foot forward.”

Despite Burnaby’s reputation as a “steady and stable” city, Hurley emphasized the need for the city to tout its own horn and become the “envy of many other communities.”

However, Burnaby faces its own challenges. Hurley said the city is doing its best to address social issues like housing, including adopting rental protection measures aimed at minimizing “demovictions”.

He expressed frustration with what he described as an overreliance on local governments to handle provincial and national responsibilities.

“Affordable housing is the purview of the other two orders of government,” Hurley said. “Burnaby has stepped up in multiple ways, but it’s not fair that the federal and provincial governments are falling short of their responsibilities.”

Hurley said Burnaby has had to dip into its coffers to fund housing-related issues and other critical needs. “We’re not happy diverting city funds, but we have no choice,” he said.

Meeting the needs of its growing community has also meant Burnaby has had to dig into its historically high reserves to address gaps in infrastructure. 

Hurley noted the dire need for a new RCMP detachment as the current one houses more than twice its intended capacity. He said the city is playing catch up with infrastructure projects such as the Rosemary Brown Recreation Centre (completed 2024), Community Safety Building to house RCMP (to be completed in 2027) James Cowan Theatre Redevelopment (to be completed 2027) Cameron Community Centre (to be completed 2028), and Burnaby Lake Recreation Complex (to be completed 2028).

“These projects were promised for decades,” Hurley said. “The Rosemary Brown pool should have been replaced 25 years ago. Our residents deserve what they need. I don’t want another generation missing out.”

While acknowledging the use of city reserves, Hurley reassured that the long-term focus remains on rebuilding those funds.

“We still have good reserves, and as soon as housing starts pick up again, we’ll begin rebuilding them. But at the end of the day, our job is to provide services and facilities. That’s the most important thing we can do.”