[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":258},["ShallowReactive",2],{"news-list":3,"article-\u002Fnews\u002Fmike-hurley-metro-vancouver-chair":20,"article-people-\u002Fnews\u002Fmike-hurley-metro-vancouver-chair":246},[4],{"path":5,"title":6,"description":7,"date":8,"publishedAt":9,"author":10,"category":11,"tags":12,"image":18,"imageAlt":18,"imageCredit":18,"updated":18,"linkedinPostUrl":18,"pinned":19},"\u002Fnews\u002Fmike-hurley-metro-vancouver-chair","Mike Hurley at Metro Vancouver: the reviewer he withdrew, the pay and the budget","Burnaby's mayor has chaired Metro Vancouver since June 2024. The record: a reviewer withdrawn after councillors asked him to step aside, a paused review, pay questions and a deferred budget.","2026-10-31","2026-10-31T14:31:19-07:00","voche.me editors","Accountability",[13,14,15,16,17],"Mayor","Metro Vancouver","North Shore Wastewater Treatment Plant","governance","budget",null,false,{"id":21,"title":6,"aiMetadata":22,"author":10,"body":36,"candidates":145,"category":11,"date":8,"description":7,"extension":147,"faq":148,"image":18,"imageAlt":18,"imageCheckedAt":18,"imageCredit":18,"imageScene":18,"linkedin":176,"linkedinPostUrl":18,"meta":183,"metaDescription":184,"navigation":185,"path":5,"pinned":19,"primarySourceUrl":18,"publishedAt":9,"seo":186,"seoTitle":187,"sourceId":18,"sourceIsPaywalled":19,"sources":188,"stem":243,"storyType":18,"tags":244,"topicKey":18,"updated":18,"__hash__":245},"news\u002Fnews\u002Fmike-hurley-metro-vancouver-chair.md",{"summary":23,"keyTopics":24,"semanticKeywords":30},"Mike Hurley, re-elected mayor of Burnaby on October 17, 2026, has chaired the Metro Vancouver board since June 28, 2024. In July 2024 he recommended William McCarthy, a campaign donor he had known for years, to review the North Shore Wastewater Treatment Plant; five councillors asked him to step aside and he withdrew the name. The review was paused in July 2025 and resumed in June 2026. Global News reported his 2023 pay at $330,000. On October 30, 2026 the board deferred the 2027 budget over his objection.",[25,26,27,28,29],"Mike Hurley","Metro Vancouver board chair","North Shore Wastewater Treatment Plant review","Metro Vancouver pay","Metro Vancouver 2027 budget",[31,32,33,34,35],"William McCarthy Metro Vancouver review","Daniel Fontaine Metro Vancouver","Acciona settlement $235 million","Metro Vancouver governance review Deloitte","Burnaby mayor Mike Hurley accountability",{"type":37,"value":38,"toc":135},"minimark",[39,48,51,56,59,62,65,68,71,75,78,81,84,87,90,94,97,100,103,107,115,118,122,125,128,132],[40,41,42,43,47],"p",{},"On July 25, 2024, less than a month after Burnaby Mayor ",[44,45,25],"a",{"href":46},"\u002Fbc\u002Fburnaby-2026\u002Fcandidates\u002Fmike-hurley"," became chair of the Metro Vancouver board, Global News reported that five municipal politicians had asked him to step aside. The reason was his choice of the person to review the North Shore Wastewater Treatment Plant, a project then expected to run $3 billion over its budget. Hurley withdrew the name the night before and stayed as chair. He still holds the job today, after Burnaby re-elected him on October 17, 2026 with 28,946 votes.",[40,49,50],{},"He ran with no elector organization. The chair leads a board of 41 directors from 21 municipalities.",[52,53,55],"h2",{"id":54},"the-reviewer-he-recommended-and-then-withdrew","The reviewer he recommended, and then withdrew",[40,57,58],{},"Metro Vancouver's board elected Hurley chair on June 28, 2024, Global News reported that day. The plant was the first question. Hurley told Global News he was upset about the project but was \"not proposing an outside audit at this time\", and instead \"a review by an independent individual\".",[40,60,61],{},"On July 24, 2024, Global News reported that the individual Hurley had recommended was William McCarthy, a businessman with a background in commercial real estate. McCarthy had been made an honorary Burnaby firefighter in 2022, at the department where Hurley had worked. Someone with the same name had given $1,250, the maximum allowed, to Hurley's 2022 mayoral campaign. That evening Hurley told the directors he had received negative feedback and was no longer recommending McCarthy. McCarthy told Global News he was \"a non-appointee to anything and private business person\".",[40,63,64],{},"The next day New Westminster Councillor Daniel Fontaine told Global News: \"We've asked him to step aside until we can confirm whether or not this is the same Mr. McCarthy who made a contribution.\" Richmond Mayor Malcolm Brodie said Hurley had his \"full confidence\".",[40,66,67],{},"CBC News reported on July 26, 2024 that Hurley had written in the report behind his motion that he had known McCarthy for \"several years\", and that Elections BC data showed a William McCarthy gave $1,250 to his campaign. Hurley said he had wanted an independent person who offered his services for free and could start at once. Fontaine called the choice \"a complete and utter failure of leadership\".",[40,69,70],{},"At the July 26 meeting Hurley confirmed the donation. \"Yes, he did donate to my campaign, but as far as I know that's legal,\" he said, as Global News and CTV News both reported. He replaced his motion with one for a formal search for an independent reviewer, which the board passed. He also paused international travel for board and committee members and announced a governance review.",[52,72,74],{"id":73},"the-review-that-stopped-and-started-again","The review that stopped and started again",[40,76,77],{},"The review did not begin quickly. On July 25, 2025, CBC News reported that the board had voted, in a closed part of its meeting, to pause the review until its legal dispute with the plant's first contractor, Acciona, was settled. The vote record is confidential. \"After careful consideration, the board has decided the public interest is best served by resolving the legal dispute with the previous contractor before undertaking the review,\" Hurley said in a news release.",[40,79,80],{},"On March 6, 2026, CBC News reported that the mayors of the City and District of North Vancouver had asked Premier David Eby for a public inquiry into the plant, whose cost had reached $3.86 billion, and a governance review of Metro Vancouver. Hurley answered in an emailed statement that Deloitte had already completed a governance review. \"I am not clear on their motivation for asking for something that is already being done,\" he said.",[40,82,83],{},"Acciona settled in May 2026 and agreed to pay Metro Vancouver $235 million. CBC News reported on June 1, 2026 that the review would resume and that Hurley promised it would be \"completely open book\". He said he understood residents who felt Metro Vancouver should not review its own project, and added: \"However, if the province wishes to step in and be part of it ... I'm open to that.\"",[40,85,86],{},"Four councils have asked the province to do exactly that. Freshet News reported on July 16, 2026 that New Westminster had joined Surrey and the two North Vancouver councils in asking the Inspector of Municipalities for an independent review. Fontaine said Metro Vancouver's review \"is not truly independent\".",[40,88,89],{},"On September 5, 2026, CTV News reported that Metro Vancouver had parted ways with its chief administrative officer, Jerry Dobrovolny. Hurley said the move came ahead of the municipal election and amid governance reform.",[52,91,93],{"id":92},"pay-and-the-deloitte-review","Pay and the Deloitte review",[40,95,96],{},"Metro Vancouver directors are paid for each meeting on top of their city salary. CBC News reported on January 31, 2025 that the rate was $547 for a meeting of up to four hours and $1,094 for a longer one. That day Hurley said he was convinced the provincial government needed to be involved in the governance review. The same week Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim said he would boycott the board, calling its governance \"broken\".",[40,98,99],{},"Deloitte's review called the 41-member board \"large and unwieldy\", Global News reported on May 23, 2025. The board ended meeting fees paid while travelling and double fees for meetings over four hours. Asked what that would save, Hurley said he could not put a number on it, and that in his experience it would not be much.",[40,101,102],{},"Global News reported on December 16, 2025 that Hurley's pay in 2023 was $330,000, among the highest totals of the region's mayors, and that Deloitte had suggested mayors earn no more than a cabinet minister's $183,000.",[52,104,106],{"id":105},"the-budget-the-new-board-will-decide","The budget the new board will decide",[40,108,109,110,114],{},"At the board's last meeting of the term, on October 30, 2026, the directors deferred the $1.7 billion 2027 operating budget to the incoming board, the Squamish Chief reported. Only 14 of the 41 directors had been re-elected. Hurley opposed the deferral. \"Passing the budget doesn't prevent ",[111,112,113],"span",{},"the new board"," from making changes,\" he said. The motion passed 87 to 36 in a weighted vote, and Hurley conceded: \"Looks like we're going to defer everything.\"",[40,116,117],{},"New Westminster's mayor-elect, Fontaine, told Freshet News on October 23, 2026 that he will move an accountability charter at the board: no extra pay for mayors, a full independent review of the plant, a smaller elected body and an auditor general for local government. Asked on election night what the region's results meant for Metro Vancouver, Hurley told Freshet the district \"will stand on its own\".",[52,119,121],{"id":120},"a-shelter-where-a-park-was-promised","A shelter where a park was promised",[40,123,124],{},"In Burnaby itself, Freshet News reported on July 2, 2026 that buyers of the Kin Collection townhouses in Royal Oak were told in 2020 that a park was planned next door at 7320 Buller Avenue. Council then decided, in closed meetings, to run a shelter there, and in 2025 to keep it open year-round until April 30, 2028. Residents wrote to the city about safety, litter and drug use.",[40,126,127],{},"Hurley told Freshet the park's delay from 2024 to 2028 \"wasn't because of the shelter\". He first said, \"It wasn't a priority for parks at that time, I believe,\" then changed that to say park planning takes time and the parks budget is limited. He said the buildings will come down in 2028.",[52,129,131],{"id":130},"what-to-watch","What to watch",[40,133,134],{},"The new Metro Vancouver board meets on November 27, 2026 to choose a chair and decide the deferred 2027 budget, and Fontaine has said his charter motion will come early. The independent review of the plant has no published date for its report. The Inspector of Municipalities has not said whether it will act on the four councils' requests.",{"title":136,"searchDepth":137,"depth":137,"links":138},"",2,[139,140,141,142,143,144],{"id":54,"depth":137,"text":55},{"id":73,"depth":137,"text":74},{"id":92,"depth":137,"text":93},{"id":105,"depth":137,"text":106},{"id":120,"depth":137,"text":121},{"id":130,"depth":137,"text":131},[146],"mike-hurley","md",[149,152,155,158,161,164,167,170,173],{"question":150,"answer":151},"Why did councillors ask Mike Hurley to step aside as Metro Vancouver chair in July 2024?","Global News reported on July 25, 2024 that five municipal politicians asked Hurley to step aside because he had recommended William McCarthy, a real estate businessman, to review the North Shore Wastewater Treatment Plant. McCarthy was made an honorary Burnaby firefighter in 2022, and a William McCarthy gave $1,250 to Hurley's 2022 campaign. Hurley withdrew the recommendation on July 24, 2024.",{"question":153,"answer":154},"What did Mike Hurley say about the donation from William McCarthy?","Global News reported on July 26, 2024 that Hurley confirmed McCarthy had donated to his 2022 mayoral campaign and said: \"Yes, he did donate to my campaign, but as far as I know that's legal.\" CBC News reported the same day that Hurley said he had known McCarthy for several years and had wanted someone who offered to work for free so the review could start at once.",{"question":156,"answer":157},"What happened to the Metro Vancouver review of the North Shore wastewater plant?","CBC News reported on July 25, 2025 that the board paused the review in a closed meeting until its legal dispute with the former contractor Acciona was settled. CBC reported on June 1, 2026 that the review would resume after Acciona agreed to pay Metro Vancouver $235 million. Hurley said the review would be \"completely open book\".",{"question":159,"answer":160},"Which cities have asked the province to review the wastewater plant instead of Metro Vancouver?","Freshet News reported on July 16, 2026 that New Westminster became the fourth council to ask the Inspector of Municipalities for an independent review, after Surrey in April 2026 and the City and District of North Vancouver on July 6, 2026. New Westminster Councillor Daniel Fontaine said Metro Vancouver's own review \"is not truly independent\".",{"question":162,"answer":163},"How much was Mike Hurley paid in 2023 from his local government roles?","Global News reported on December 16, 2025 that Hurley's pay in 2023 was $330,000, and that a Deloitte governance review had suggested mayors should not earn more than a provincial cabinet minister, which it put at $183,000. Metro Vancouver directors are paid for each board meeting on top of their city salary; CBC News put the rate at $547 for a meeting of up to four hours in January 2025.",{"question":165,"answer":166},"What did Metro Vancouver's board decide about its 2027 budget on October 30, 2026?","The Squamish Chief reported on October 30, 2026 that the board deferred its $1.7 billion 2027 operating budget to the incoming board, which meets on November 27, 2026. Only 14 of the 41 directors were re-elected on October 17. Hurley opposed the deferral and said passing the budget would not stop the new board from making changes. The motion passed 87 to 36 in a weighted vote.",{"question":168,"answer":169},"What did Mike Hurley say when the North Vancouver mayors called for a public inquiry?","CBC News reported on March 6, 2026 that the mayors of the City and District of North Vancouver asked Premier David Eby for a public inquiry into the plant and a governance review of Metro Vancouver. Hurley answered in an emailed statement that Deloitte had already completed a governance review and said: \"I am not clear on their motivation for asking for something that is already being done.\"",{"question":171,"answer":172},"Why are residents of Burnaby's Royal Oak neighbourhood angry about a shelter on a planned park site?","Freshet News reported on July 2, 2026 that buyers of the Kin Collection townhouses were told in 2020 that a park was planned next door at 7320 Buller Avenue, and that council later decided in closed meetings to run a shelter there until April 30, 2028. Hurley told Freshet the delay to the park \"wasn't because of the shelter\" and that the buildings will come down in 2028.",{"question":174,"answer":175},"Did Mike Hurley face a real contest in the 2026 Burnaby mayoral election?","Yes. The City of Burnaby's count gives Hurley 28,946 votes on October 17, 2026, and the chief election officer declared him elected on October 21, 2026. In 2022 he had been acclaimed, with nobody running against him. Daily Hive reported that Heymann Yip of Burnaby First finished second in 2026 with 9,250 votes.",{"short":177,"long":178,"hashtags":179},"Mike Hurley has chaired Metro Vancouver since June 2024. Outlets reported a reviewer he withdrew, a paused review, pay questions and a budget the new board will decide on November 27.","Burnaby Mayor Mike Hurley was re-elected on October 17, 2026 and still chairs the Metro Vancouver board. In July 2024, less than a month into the job, he recommended a campaign donor he had known for years to review the $3.86 billion North Shore Wastewater Treatment Plant. Five councillors asked him to step aside. He withdrew the name and said the donation was legal. The review was paused in a closed vote in July 2025 and resumed in June 2026 after a $235 million settlement. Four cities have asked the province's Inspector of Municipalities to review the project instead. On October 30, 2026 the board deferred its $1.7 billion 2027 budget over his objection.",[180,181,182],"Burnaby","MetroVancouver","LocalGovernment",{},"Mike Hurley's time as Metro Vancouver chair: the reviewer he withdrew in July 2024, the paused review, the pay questions and the deferred 2027 budget.",true,{"title":6,"description":7},"Mike Hurley's record as Metro Vancouver chair",[189,192,195,198,201,204,207,210,213,216,219,222,225,228,231,234,237,240],{"label":190,"url":191},"Global News: Metro Vancouver picks new chair amid travel, wastewater plant controversies, by Catherine Urquhart, June 28, 2024","https:\u002F\u002Fglobalnews.ca\u002Fnews\u002F10595560\u002Fmetro-vancouver-new-chair-controversies\u002F",{"label":193,"url":194},"Global News: Who will head the review of Metro Vancouver's overbudget sewage plant?, by Catherine Urquhart, July 24, 2024","https:\u002F\u002Fglobalnews.ca\u002Fnews\u002F10641341\u002Fwho-will-head-the-review-of-metro-vancouvers-overbudget-sewage-plant",{"label":196,"url":197},"Global News: Councillors call for new Metro Vancouver board chair to step aside, by Catherine Urquhart, July 25, 2024","https:\u002F\u002Fglobalnews.ca\u002Fnews\u002F10643647\u002Fmetro-vancouver-board-chair-controversy",{"label":199,"url":200},"CBC News: Metro Vancouver chair changes plans for finding a candidate to review wastewater plant, by Chad Pawson, July 26, 2024","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.cbc.ca\u002Fnews\u002Fcanada\u002Fbritish-columbia\u002Fnorthshore-wastewater-treatment-plant-independent-review-advisor-1.7276910",{"label":202,"url":203},"Global News: Metro Vancouver freezes international travel amid spending questions, by Andrea Macpherson and Simon Little, July 26, 2024","https:\u002F\u002Fglobalnews.ca\u002Fnews\u002F10645926\u002Fmetro-vancouver-travel-inquiry-new-chair",{"label":205,"url":206},"CTV News Vancouver: Metro Vancouver moving forward with wastewater project audit, international travel ban, by CTV News Vancouver staff, July 26, 2024","https:\u002F\u002Fbc.ctvnews.ca\u002Fmetro-vancouver-moving-forward-with-wastewater-project-audit-international-travel-ban-1.6979750",{"label":208,"url":209},"CBC News: Metro Vancouver asks for provincial help with governance review, by Chad Pawson, January 31, 2025","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.cbc.ca\u002Fnews\u002Fcanada\u002Fbritish-columbia\u002Fmetro-vancouver-governance-review-provincial-government-1.7447724",{"label":211,"url":212},"Global News: Metro Vancouver board makes changes after damning governance report, by Catherine Urquhart, May 23, 2025","https:\u002F\u002Fglobalnews.ca\u002Fnews\u002F11194788\u002Fmetro-vancouver-board-changes-report",{"label":214,"url":215},"CBC News: Metro Vancouver pauses independent review of North Shore wastewater treatment plant, by Chad Pawson, July 25, 2025","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.cbc.ca\u002Fnews\u002Fcanada\u002Fbritish-columbia\u002Fmetro-vancouver-board-votes-to-pause-nswwtp-review-until-legal-dispute-settled-1.7594512",{"label":217,"url":218},"Global News: Board of Metro Vancouver leadership in chaos as scrutiny continues, by Catherine Urquhart and Amy Judd, December 16, 2025","https:\u002F\u002Fglobalnews.ca\u002Fnews\u002F11580444\u002Fboard-of-metro-vancouver-leadership-chaos",{"label":220,"url":221},"CBC News: North Vancouver mayors call for inquiry into $3.86B wastewater treatment project, by The Canadian Press, March 6, 2026","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.cbc.ca\u002Fnews\u002Fcanada\u002Fbritish-columbia\u002Fnorth-vancouver-inquiry-wastewater-treatment-project-cost-overruns-9.7116711",{"label":223,"url":224},"CBC News: Metro Vancouver board chair promises 'completely open book' review of North Shore wastewater treatment plant, by Akshay Kulkarni, June 1, 2026","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.cbc.ca\u002Fnews\u002Fcanada\u002Fbritish-columbia\u002Fmetro-vancouver-review-north-shore-wastewater-plant-9.7220061",{"label":226,"url":227},"Freshet News: Burnaby residents angered at homeless shelter on planned park site, by Cornelia Naylor, July 2, 2026","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.freshetnews.ca\u002Fburnaby-residents-angered-at-homeless-shelter-on-planned-park-site\u002F",{"label":229,"url":230},"Freshet News: New Westminster calls for independent review of North Shore wastewater treatment plant project, by Theresa McManus, July 16, 2026","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.freshetnews.ca\u002Fnew-westminster-calls-for-independent-review-of-north-shore-wastewater-treatment-plant-project\u002F",{"label":232,"url":233},"CTV News Vancouver: Metro Vancouver parts ways with chief administrative officer, by The Canadian Press, September 5, 2026","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.ctvnews.ca\u002Fvancouver\u002Farticle\u002Fmetro-vancouver-parts-ways-with-chief-administrative-officer\u002F",{"label":235,"url":236},"Freshet News: New Westminster mayor-elect Daniel Fontaine wants changes at Metro Vancouver, by Theresa McManus, October 23, 2026","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.freshetnews.ca\u002Fnew-westminster-mayor-elect-daniel-fontaine-wants-changes-at-metro-vancouver\u002F",{"label":238,"url":239},"Squamish Chief: Board turnover results in Metro Vancouver budget deferral, by Graeme Wood, October 30, 2026","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.squamishchief.com\u002Feconomy-law-politics\u002Fmetro-vancouvers-17b-budget-deferred-to-newly-elected-officials-12962543",{"label":241,"url":242},"Daily Hive: Mike Hurley secures third term as Burnaby mayor, by DH Vancouver Staff, October 17, 2026","https:\u002F\u002Fdailyhive.com\u002Fvancouver\u002Fmike-hurley-burnaby-mayor-2026","news\u002Fmike-hurley-metro-vancouver-chair",[13,14,15,16,17],"yFLWDaAPzq0nL8wzWQ_GvMXhisC2t-b7hNBK6ziGv8c",[247],{"slug":146,"name":25,"office":13,"party":18,"portrait":248,"colour":257,"palette":18},{"src":249,"smallSrc":250,"width":251,"height":252,"alt":253,"credit":254,"sourceUrl":255,"position":256},"\u002Fimages\u002Fcandidates\u002Fmike-hurley-640.webp","\u002Fimages\u002Fcandidates\u002Fmike-hurley-320.webp",640,800,"Mike Hurley, from City of Burnaby.","City of Burnaby","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.burnaby.ca\u002Four-city\u002Fmayor-and-council\u002Felections\u002Fcandidates\u002Foffice-of-mayor-candidate-profiles","50% 30%","blue",1793487131532]