Thurs, Apr. 3, 2024 edition: Burnaby RCMP to collect race-based data

Good morning, Burnaby!

As of Monday, Burnaby RCMP has joined a pilot project to collect race-based data during calls for service. In other news, council approved a new contribution agreement with the Burnaby Neighbourhood House Society, spending $110,000 to support the organization. That’s 25% of their annual budget! All that and more in today’s newsletter.

👀 In today's edition:

• Burnaby RCMP to collect race-based data

• Garage transformed into Korean grocery store

• Burnaby’s 2023 Annual Municipal Report open for input

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NEWS

Burnaby RCMP joins pilot project to collect race-based data

As of April 1, 2024, Burnaby RCMP has joined a pilot project to collect race-based data during calls for service.

Three other municipalities joined earlier this year: Thompson, Manitoba, Whitehorse, Yukon, and Fort McMurray, Alberta, joined in early January. A municipality in Nova Scotia will join the pilot later this spring. The pilot comes after two years of consultations with various stakeholders across Canada. 

“The Burnaby RCMP is pleased to be contributing to this pilot, as we believe it’s an important step in continuing to build trust and more inclusive communities for everyone,” said Burnaby RCMP officer in charge, Chief Superintendent Graham de la Gorgendiere.

Read the full story on what the pilot project is, and why it’s needed.

Burnaby Bulletin

A new Korean grocery store. Korean food supplier T-Brothers Food & Trading Ltd. is in the process of transforming an auto garage into a grocery store in Burnaby’s Royal Oak neighbourhood. [Burnaby Now]

Business as usual. Parkland Refinery, the source of a major technological incident that clouded Burnaby with smoke and foul odour in January, has returned to normal operations as of March 29. [CTV News]

63 months in custody. A lawyer for a man found guilty of murdering a 13-year-old Burnaby girl is asking a judge to stay the jury’s verdict over unreasonable delays in getting him to trial. [Times Colonist]

More housing in Burnaby. Three new affordable housing projects were approved by the province recently, providing more rental options for local seniors, as well as Indigenous and low-income families. [Burnaby Now]

Hospital phone lines down. Burnaby Hospital phone lines went down temporarily this week—though patient care has not been affected by the problem, it caused frustration to families and loved ones. [CityNews]

Annual Municipal Report. Burnaby’s 2023 Annual Municipal Report is now available for public input, outlining the city’s financial statements for last year. Provide your feedback here before April 19.

NEWS

Council approves new agreement with Burnaby Neighbourhood House Society

On Mar. 25, Burnaby City Council approved a new Burnaby Neighbourhood House Society (BNHS) contribution agreement. The new agreement, first proposed at the Executive Committee of Council meeting on Mar. 6, will provide BNHS with a total of $110,000, which includes the cost of printing resource guides. 

The new agreement also includes in-kind contributions for the BNHS annual gala, which used to be funded through other processes. BNHS will no longer be eligible to apply for community grants under the new Community Grant Policy. 

“This is the first agreement of its kind that is coming in front of the committee,” Coun. Sav Dhaliwal said on Mar. 6. “Considering that we have $400,000 in the total budget, $110,000 is approximately more than 25% of the total budget.”

Find more information about the new agreement here.

Where to eat & drink

🥪 Bastion Coffee + Kitchen. Located inside the Christine Sinclair Community Centre, this marble counter cafe makes great coffee and sandwiches ideal for busy day breakfasts and lunches. Highly recommended are their brioche breakfast sandwiches with egg and avocado as well as their lobster melt.

🥞 Sugar Lab Pancake House. Though you can find all sorts of enticing desserts at this quaint pancake house, they’re undoubtedly known for their mille crepe cakes (exactly as the name suggests, a crepe cake with layers of cream in between) which come in a variety of flavours like matcha, earl grey, black sesame and many more.

🌮 La Taqueria Pinche Taco Shop. Arguably the best place to get tacos in Burnaby, La Taqueria Pinche offers classics like baja fish, carne asada and tinga de pollo (on your choice of corn or flour tortilla) as well as an inviting list of shareables like chicharron, nachos and queso fundido.

🤝 Now Hiring

Looking to make a move? Here are local jobs open right now:

• Fine Arts Instructor at City of Burnaby

• Advanced Dog Trainer at PADS

• Outside Sales Representative at VidCom Communications

• Dance Instructor at Vancouver Phoenix International Academy of Dance

• Bakery Supervisor at Fortuna Bakery

• Project Submissions Support at Bureau Veritas

• Acupuncturist at Bonalife Acupuncture & Herbal Medicine Clinic

• Thermal Physicist at KT Photonics Inc.

Hiring and want to let people know? Reply back and let us know!

🗓 Things to do

Thursday

• English Conversation Circle. 11:30pm. Burnaby Public Library.

• Community Arts and Crafts. 10:30am. Burnaby Neighbourhood House.

Friday

• Japanese Storytime. 11am. Burnaby Public Library.

• Witness to Humanity Gala. 6pm. Education Building #7608 at Simon Fraser University.

• Pipes & Scrums. 7pm. 4333 Ledger Ave.

• Free Beginner Salsa. 7pm. World Dance Co.

Saturday

• Metropolis. 7:30pm. Shadbolt Centre for the Arts.

• Social Bike Ride. 1pm. CVG at Gilmore Ave.

• Palestine In Our Classrooms: Incorporating Palestine and Palestinian Voices. 9:30am. Edmonds.

• La Bohème. 7:30pm. Shadbolt Centre for the Arts.

Sunday

• Vancouver Camera Show. 9:30am. Nikkei National Museum & Cultural Centre.

• Clean Energy Battery Workshop. 9am. William F. White International Inc.

Monday

• ASA x MNP Info Session. 2:30pm. Simon Fraser University. 

• Tigrinya Storytime. 12:30pm. Burnaby Public Library.

• Metropolis at Metrotown Master Plan Update Information Session. 4pm. Grand Court, Metropolis at Metrotown.

Tuesday

• Jazz Jam. 6:30pm. Shadbolt Centre for the Arts.

• Big Ideas Workshop: A Public Dialogue with the Burnaby Community Assembly. 8:30pm. Bonsor Banquet Hall.

Wednesday

• Dumpling Festival. 5pm. Burnaby Heights.

• Babytime. 11:30am. Burnaby Public Library.

• Creative Protesting. 7pm. Starbucks at Lougheed Mall.