Kirk LaPointe sworn in as West Vancouver mayor with promises on taxes and resident input

Kirk LaPointe was sworn in as mayor of the District of West Vancouver on the evening of Monday, November 2, 2026, alongside six councillors, beginning a new council term that runs until October 2030.

Daily Hive Vancouver published LaPointe's full inaugural speech on November 3. In it, he set out his three main areas of work: giving residents a voice before decisions are made, keeping the District's spending in order, and creating room for people to stay in West Vancouver or build a life there.

LaPointe defeated incumbent mayor Mark Sager in the October 17 general local election. The District's preliminary results, published on its news page on October 17, confirmed the outcome. LaPointe had not held elected office before this win; his previous attempt to enter politics came in 2014, when he ran unsuccessfully for Vancouver mayor under the Non-Partisan Association banner.

Who is on the new Council

The seven-member Council includes three returning members and three who won their seats for the first time in the October 17 election.

Returning to Council are Linda Watt, Peter Lambur and Scott Snider. LaPointe described them in his speech as bringing experience in the creative industries and community advocacy, architecture and urban planning, and business and professional mediation.

The three newly elected councillors are Lee Lau, Jaime Webbe and Tim Webb. LaPointe described them as bringing backgrounds in medicine and health care, international diplomacy and financial management, and local business and commercial property.

He brings a background in journalism and media, including time as managing editor of the Vancouver Sun, executive editor of the National Post, and CBC's ombudsman for English services, as well as former roles at Business in Vancouver and Glacier Media.

What LaPointe said about taxes and spending

The most specific commitment in LaPointe's inauguration speech was on finances. He said residents had told him they want the District to be responsible with their money and to fix problems while conditions allow it.

During his campaign, LaPointe promised to bring the projected 2027 property tax increase down from nearly 7% to 3%. He also committed to holding spending growth after 2027 to no more than half the rate of inflation each year. Both are recorded as promises on his tracker page. He said in his speech that he expected Council to face surprises from other levels of government, and that a careful approach to spending was the right preparation.

His campaign also included a promise to stop using reserve funds to pay for recurring operating costs, and to publish a business case before council approves any major new capital project.

What LaPointe said about involving residents

LaPointe used a large part of his speech to describe how he wants the Council to hear from residents. He said the Council would consult people while decisions are still being shaped, before staff write a preferred option or a recommendation.

"We were elected, but not by everyone, and our role is to make sure every voice has a genuine opportunity to be heard," LaPointe said, as quoted by Daily Hive. He named the renter, the newcomer, the young person and the senior who may have stopped expecting to be heard as people he wants the Council to reach.

His campaign commitments on this topic, on record at his tracker page, include restoring citizen advisory committees, holding Ask-Me-Anything sessions at Municipal Hall twice a month, and consulting residents before staff choose a preferred option on a decision. He also committed to publishing, before council votes, a summary of what residents said and how their input changed the decision.

The Ubyssey, in an October 2026 profile of the mayoral race, reported that LaPointe described his approach to consultation as being about bringing people in before staff write their recommendation, so that the community shapes the question rather than reacting to an answer already chosen by staff.

What LaPointe said about housing

LaPointe said in his speech that the Council faces the challenge of preserving what residents value while also creating room for people to age in West Vancouver and for younger generations to build lives nearby.

His campaign platform, as quoted in coverage from The Ubyssey during the campaign, called for smaller-scale, multi-unit housing that gives priority to seniors, young families and first responders, while preserving the character of existing neighbourhoods. He also proposed an urgent and primary care centre as his first priority for a public-private partnership, and said he would advance arts, skating and seniors' facilities.

LaPointe said in his speech that he wants West Vancouver to be a place that welcomes newcomers and gives them a reason to stay. He said preserving what people love about the community and making it possible for more people to live there are part of the same promise.

Metro Vancouver and the wastewater plant

LaPointe named Metro Vancouver Regional District as a place where he will act. During his campaign, he committed to pushing for an independent review of the North Shore Wastewater Treatment Plant, seeking changes to the funding formula and repayment period, and refusing additional regional compensation. The previous council, under mayor Mark Sager, wrote to the Inspector of Municipalities in August 2026 about concerns related to the plant's costs for West Vancouver.

What comes next

The Community Charter requires the first regular council meeting of the new term to take place within the first 10 days of November. That meeting has not been announced on the District's public calendar at the time of this article.

Residents can follow the new Council's decisions and track how LaPointe's promises are progressing at the West Vancouver promise tracker.