Mayeli Alvarez is the TEAM for a Livable Vancouver candidate for Park Board at ballot number 219 in the October 17, 2026 election. This record covers the campaign biography, the statement she published with Jon Girard when they announced their run, her Instagram posts, the court case over the Vancouver Aquatic Centre brought by the society she directs, and TEAM's published parks platform.
The score counts how complete and checkable the published plan on this issue is. Whether the plan would work is a separate question, left to the reader. Measured October 3, 2026. The same seven points apply to every candidate for this office.
Parks and recreation6/10
2/2
A position in the candidate’s own words
“She believes that parks and recreational facilities are our greatest tools for preventative care, both mental and physical.”
The questionnaire has not been sent yet. No candidate has this point.
TEAM for a Livable Vancouver’s platform on parks: 9 commitments, at least one with a number. Party text earns the candidate the position point only.
What this office controls. Vancouver is the only major city in Canada with a separately elected park board. Its seven commissioners control parks, community centres, pools, rinks and beaches.
The questionnaire has not been sent yet. No candidate has this point.
What this office controls. Council, the Park Board and the Board of Education each set their own meeting rules, committees, public consultation and reporting. The Vancouver Charter and the School Act create the three bodies and set their powers, and only the Province can change those acts.
Party platform; candidate not quoted. TEAM for a Livable Vancouver publishes 5 commitments on this issue.
0/2
Names a mechanism the office controls
Party text earns no points here; the statement must be the candidate’s own.
0/2
States a measurable target
Party text earns no points here; the statement must be the candidate’s own.
0/1
States a cost or funding source
Party text earns no points here; the statement must be the candidate’s own.
0/1
States a timeline
Party text earns no points here; the statement must be the candidate’s own.
0/1
A dated, sourced action on the issue
No dated public action on this issue found.
0/1
Answered the voche.me question on the issue
The questionnaire has not been sent yet. No candidate has this point.
TEAM for a Livable Vancouver’s platform on taxes and budget: 5 commitments, none with a number. Party text earns the candidate the position point only.
What this office controls. The Park Board sets its own fees and approves its budget request. Council approves the City budget that funds it and the capital plan that pays for park buildings.
The questionnaire has not been sent yet. No candidate has this point.
TEAM for a Livable Vancouver’s platform on climate: 7 commitments, at least one with a number. Party text earns the candidate the position point only.
What this office controls. The Park Board manages trees, natural areas and the shoreline inside parks, and its own community centres, pools and rinks. The City’s building bylaw is Council’s.
Party platform; candidate not quoted. TEAM for a Livable Vancouver publishes 4 commitments on this issue.
0/2
Names a mechanism the office controls
Party text earns no points here; the statement must be the candidate’s own.
0/2
States a measurable target
Party text earns no points here; the statement must be the candidate’s own.
0/1
States a cost or funding source
Party text earns no points here; the statement must be the candidate’s own.
0/1
States a timeline
Party text earns no points here; the statement must be the candidate’s own.
0/1
A dated, sourced action on the issue
No dated public action on this issue found.
0/1
Answered the voche.me question on the issue
The questionnaire has not been sent yet. No candidate has this point.
TEAM for a Livable Vancouver’s platform on public safety: 4 commitments, none with a number. Party text earns the candidate the position point only.
What this office controls. The Park Board makes the bylaws and rules for parks and beaches and runs the park rangers. Policing is the Vancouver Police Department’s, and Council approves its budget.
Party platform; candidate not quoted. TEAM for a Livable Vancouver publishes 5 commitments on this issue.
0/2
Names a mechanism the office controls
Party text earns no points here; the statement must be the candidate’s own.
0/2
States a measurable target
Party text earns no points here; the statement must be the candidate’s own.
0/1
States a cost or funding source
Party text earns no points here; the statement must be the candidate’s own.
0/1
States a timeline
Party text earns no points here; the statement must be the candidate’s own.
0/1
A dated, sourced action on the issue
No dated public action on this issue found.
0/1
Answered the voche.me question on the issue
The questionnaire has not been sent yet. No candidate has this point.
TEAM for a Livable Vancouver’s platform on transport: 5 commitments, none with a number. Party text earns the candidate the position point only.
What this office controls. The Park Board decides the roads, paths and parking inside parks, including Stanley Park Drive. City streets and bike lanes outside parks are Council’s.
On dates without a confirmed appearance the public schedule is unknown; the candidate may still have activities that day. This static page changes only when its research is updated.
01 / Introduction
About Mayeli Alvarez
Mayeli Alvarez appears on the City of Vancouver's final 2026 candidate list for Park Board, with ballot number 219. The City records the affiliation as TEAM for a Livable Vancouver.
The TEAM candidate page says Alvarez studied Environmental Design at the University of British Columbia and holds a Master of Science in Architectural Conservation from the University of Edinburgh.
The TEAM candidate page says Alvarez is a Leisure Access Pass holder, a community centre user, a former competitive swimmer and a cyclist.
The TEAM candidate page says Alvarez is a director of the Protecting Our Vancouver Aquatic Centre Society and has pressed for transparency in city decision-making.
The society's own website names Alvarez and Jon Girard as the two people who took the City of Vancouver and the Park Board to the Supreme Court of British Columbia over the Aquatic Centre replacement.
Daily Hive's September 26, 2026 report on the written ruling says the case was brought by the society and Girard, and does not name Alvarez as a petitioner. voche.me has not opened the court file, so whether she is a named party is unconfirmed.
In a statement they published together on September 1, 2026, Alvarez and Girard say neither of them has run for public office before. Alvarez repeated this in an Instagram post on September 11, 2026. voche.me found no record of an earlier candidacy.
TEAM for a Livable Vancouver announced Alvarez as a Park Board candidate on August 27, 2026, alongside Jon Girard and Allan Fawley.
Daily Hive listed Alvarez at ballot number 219 for Park Board on September 22, 2026.
The City's candidate list links to her TEAM candidate page as her website, and to an Instagram account (@votemayeli), an X account (@VOTEmayeli) and a Facebook page.
voche.me assembled this profile from the official candidate list and the campaign material linked under Sources. The campaign has not been contacted, and no candidate-supplied content appears on this page.
Published positions and selected commitments, separated by election cycle. Status labels describe the evidence reviewed, not a numerical score or a complete audit of the platform. Council approval is different from delivery.
21 commitments shown · Checked Oct 3
2026 · Recreation facilitiesCampaign pledge
Keep a 50-metre pool at the Vancouver Aquatic Centre
TEAM's parks platform of August 17, 2026 commits the party to retaining a 50-metre pool at the Vancouver Aquatic Centre. TEAM's announcement of August 27, 2026 describes Alvarez as a leading advocate for that pool.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
The platform states the commitment. The B.C. Supreme Court dismissed the society's challenge to the 25-metre plan in September 2026 and Daily Hive reported demolition would begin in early October 2026, so the pledge would apply to a project already under way.
What still needs checking
Whether a 50-metre pool can still be added after demolition begins, and at what cost.
Maintain and retrofit buildings instead of replacing them
The TEAM candidate page quotes Alvarez's page directly: maintaining and retrofitting buildings is essential to reducing a city's carbon footprint, and this is the lens she brings to her work on the park board.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
The candidate page states the belief. It does not name a building or a retrofit program the Park Board would run.
What still needs checking
Which Park Board buildings Alvarez would retrofit rather than replace.
The TEAM candidate page says Alvarez holds that democratic voices have been shut out of recent city decisions and that procurement misconduct damages civic accountability.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
The candidate page states the position. The page names no specific procurement finding, and no independent finding of procurement misconduct was located.
What still needs checking
Which decisions and which procurement records Alvarez is referring to.
Spend $739 million on parks and recreation over four years
TEAM's parks platform of August 17, 2026 commits at least $739 million over four years for parks, recreation and public spaces, and says more than 70 per cent of recreation facilities are in poor condition.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
This is the party's position and the party's figure. Alvarez is not quoted in the platform. The condition figure is TEAM's own and was not independently checked.
What still needs checking
Where the $739 million comes from and how the facility condition figure was measured.
More park space and permanent protection for parkland
TEAM's platform commits to increasing neighbourhood park space by at least 20 per cent toward a target of 1.1 hectares per 1,000 residents, and to giving permanent legal protection to the 18 per cent of Vancouver parkland that lacks it.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
This is the party's position, reported by Daily Hive on the same day. Alvarez is not quoted.
What still needs checking
Which parcels make up the 18 per cent and how the new park space would be bought.
2026 · Community involvement in decisionsCampaign pledge
Community involvement in decisions
The campaign says Alvarez is running with TEAM because of its commitment to community involvement, protecting green spaces and keeping access to recreation facilities.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
Taken from the campaign page listed in the sources. No independent confirmation was found.
What still needs checking
What would this cost, who would deliver it, and by when?
Restoring Park Board budget and operations independence
TEAM's Park Board platform says it will move finance, operations and facilities back under Park Board control from City departments, with line by line budget review, and will push for a fixed share of the City's tax base to fund the Park Board.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
This is the party's published Park Board platform. It names no candidate, no dollar figure for the tax base share and no date.
TEAM's Park Board platform says it will plan for the effect of climate change on Vancouver's parks, beaches and seawalls, and will limit tree removal in Stanley Park while protecting and expanding the tree canopy.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
This is the party's published Park Board platform. It names no candidate, no target number and no date for the planning work.
What still needs checking
What would the climate planning include, and by when would it be finished?
Restoring vehicle access to Stanley Park Drive and Beach Avenue
TEAM's Park Board platform says it will restore the vehicle access to Stanley Park Drive and Beach Avenue that existed before the pandemic, while adding separate paths for cycling and walking.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
This is the party's published Park Board platform. It names no candidate, no cost and no date for the change.
What still needs checking
Does Alvarez support restoring vehicle access to Stanley Park Drive and Beach Avenue, and on what timeline?
Move to stop the current Aquatic Centre project and reopen planning
In a statement she wrote with Jon Girard on September 1, 2026, Alvarez says she would move a Park Board motion to stop the current Vancouver Aquatic Centre project and reopen its planning in public, including the options staff dropped before commissioners saw them. The goal they name is a ten-lane, 50-metre public pool at the Aquatic Centre site.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
The statement names a Board motion as the step. It gives no cost and no date. Daily Hive reported on September 26, 2026 that demolition of the existing building was scheduled to begin on October 1, 2026; voche.me found no report on October 3 that says whether it had begun.
What still needs checking
What a 50-metre pool on the site would cost now, and when the motion would come to the Board.
Let the public choose the shape of large facilities before design starts
The September 1 statement says that on large projects the public would choose the shape of a facility from a recorded set of costed options before any design work begins.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
The statement does not say which projects count as large, how the public choice would be recorded, what it would cost, or when the rule would start.
What still needs checking
Which projects the rule would cover, and how the choice would be made.
The September 1 statement commits to a capital transparency standard in the first year: every major capital decision would come to the Board with all the options, including those staff recommend against, the cost estimate for each, and a written reason for each rejected option, published before the vote.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
The statement names the rule and the first year as the time. It does not say which decisions count as major or what the work would cost.
What still needs checking
Which decisions the rule would cover, and whether it would be a Board policy or a bylaw.
The September 1 statement says no Park Board facility would close until a written plan for where its programs go in the meantime had been given to the user groups affected.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
The statement points to the notice Britannia's clubs received, which voche.me has not checked. It gives no cost and no date.
What still needs checking
Whether the rule would apply to closures already scheduled, such as Britannia.
End the pandemic-era reservation rules at Kitsilano Pool
In an Instagram post published with TEAM's account on September 24, 2026, Alvarez calls for ending the reservation system and the closures during the day at Kitsilano Pool, which she says date from the pandemic, starting next summer season.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
The post names the rules and the next summer season. It gives no cost and does not say whether any share of spaces would stay bookable. It says the closures are a money grab; that is her claim, and the post gives no figures.
What still needs checking
What the change would cost in staff and lost fees, and how crowding would be handled.
Rescind the Park Board's approval for the Nelson Park substation
TEAM's answer to The West End Journal says the party would rescind the Park Board's approval of the land use agreements that let BC Hydro build an underground electrical substation at Nelson Park, and would ask the BC Utilities Commission to deny the permit the project needs.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
This is the party's answer, printed under mayoral candidate Colleen Hardwick's name. Alvarez is not quoted on it. It gives no cost for ending the agreements.
What still needs checking
What ending the agreements would cost the Park Board, and whether Alvarez supports it.
Each entry below names its source. Campaign material is the candidate's own account. Nothing here is presented as a verified outcome unless the entry says so.
Approved
Park Board approved a 25-metre pool for the rebuilt Vancouver Aquatic Centre
Global News reported the Park Board voted to rebuild the Vancouver Aquatic Centre with a 25-metre lap pool in place of the current 50-metre pool, plus a hot pool and a leisure and lesson pool. Staff advised that a 50-metre pool built to current standards was not feasible on the site without raising cost and time and putting the funding at risk. The vote included an amendment committing the city to deliver a new 50-metre pool elsewhere in Vancouver within ten years.
Scope, limits and sources
This is the decision Alvarez has campaigned against. Global News reported broad community and sports group opposition at the meeting and did not name how each commissioner voted.
Director of the society whose court challenge over the Aquatic Centre pool size was dismissed
Alvarez is a director of the Protecting Our Vancouver Aquatic Centre Society, which asked the B.C. Supreme Court to overturn the decision to replace the Vancouver Aquatic Centre's 50-metre pool with a 25-metre pool. Justice Christopher Giaschi dismissed the petition on September 15, 2026, ruling that the City and the Park Board acted reasonably, and released written reasons on September 23, 2026.
Scope, limits and sources
The society's website, including a statement Alvarez wrote with Jon Girard, names the two of them as the petitioners. Daily Hive's September 26, 2026 report on the written reasons says the case was brought by the society and Girard, and does not name Alvarez. CBC News names her as a director of the society. voche.me has not opened the court file or the written ruling.
Read original statements and reporting, or open the publisher’s video. A summary of a speech is labelled separately from a full recording.
Statement
Joint statement announcing the Park Board run
Alvarez and Jon Girard published a statement on the society's website, under both their names, saying they are running for Park Board with TEAM's endorsement. It sets out five aims: stop the current Aquatic Centre project and reopen planning for a ten-lane, 50-metre pool; let the public choose the shape of large facilities before design starts; a capital transparency rule in the first year; no facility closure without a plan for its users; and avoiding the same result at Kitsilano, Kerrisdale, Britannia and Renfrew. The two also say they support Colleen Hardwick for mayor. The page says they publish it in their personal capacity as candidates.
Alvarez asked voters to replace elected officials who, in her words, ignore the people they represent, and said she would bring accountability, trust and community voices back to the Board.
Alvarez posted about picking up her campaign signs, wrote that she had never expected to run for public office, and asked for support for Colleen Hardwick for mayor and herself for Park Board.
In a post published jointly with TEAM's account, Alvarez criticised the reservation system and the closures during the day at Kitsilano Pool, said Green candidate Tom Digby and Vancouver Liberals candidate Scott Jensen do not want to change them, and called for ending the rules by next summer. She says the closures are a money grab; the post gives no figures for that claim.
Instagram post: the July 15 demolition contract vote
Alvarez wrote about the vote of July 15, 2026 on the contract to demolish the Vancouver Aquatic Centre. She says it passed although her group had found a transcript in which, she says, architects and City staff discussed how to lead elected officials to believe a 50-metre pool was impossible. This is her allegation. voche.me has not seen the transcript and found no official finding on it.
Records are labelled by type, including official findings, civil proceedings and political disputes where applicable. Each entry identifies the response found in the sources and the latest status verified for this page.
Civil lawsuit
Court dismissed the society's challenge to the Aquatic Centre replacement
Alvarez is a director of the Protecting Our Vancouver Aquatic Centre Society, which asked the Supreme Court of British Columbia to review the decision to replace the Vancouver Aquatic Centre's 50-metre pool with a 25-metre pool. The society's website names Alvarez and Jon Girard as the two petitioners. Daily Hive's report on the written ruling says the case was brought by the society and Girard.
Candidate or party response
On September 23, 2026 the society said it is appealing to the B.C. Court of Appeal and has retained a lawyer. That post is signed by Girard. No separate published statement by Alvarez about the ruling was found.
Verified status and limits
CBC News and Daily Hive reported that Justice Christopher Giaschi dismissed the petition on September 15, 2026, ruling that the City and the Park Board acted reasonably. Daily Hive reported that he released written reasons on September 23, 2026, and that the ruling says nothing in the evidence supports the claim that the City or the Park Board deliberately misled voters. voche.me found no court record of a filed appeal on October 3, 2026.
Save Our 50m PoolCampaign · Protecting Our Vancouver Aquatic Centre Society
A dated reading list from independent publishers. The headings below are voche.me summaries; follow each link for the original article, context and any corrections.
Reporting
Daily Hive
TEAM vows new Vancouver Aquatic Centre with 50-metre pool in Park Board platform
Daily Hive reported TEAM's parks platform, including the $739 million commitment, the 20 per cent park space increase and the promise to keep a 50-metre pool at the Vancouver Aquatic Centre. Alvarez is not named in the article.
Demolition of a beloved Vancouver pool is set to proceed
Daily Hive reported that the B.C. Supreme Court dismissed the Protecting Our Vancouver Aquatic Centre Society's challenge and that demolition would begin in early October. The article describes the society, which Alvarez directs, but does not name Alvarez.
Vancouver Aquatic Centre set for demolition after legal challenge denied
CBC News reported Justice Christopher Giaschi's dismissal of the society's petition and quoted Jon Girard at length. The article names Alvarez as a fellow POVAC director and park board candidate but does not quote her directly.
Why a judge dismissed the challenge to Vancouver Aquatic Centre's redevelopment with a 25-metre pool
Daily Hive reported the written reasons for dismissing the society's petition and the society's plan to appeal. It names Alvarez as another leader of the society running for Park Board with TEAM, and quotes the statement in which she and Girard announced their candidacies.
Vancouver Civic Election: party answers to four West End questions
The West End Journal printed parties' answers on a hotel proposal, the Aquatic Centre, the Nelson Park substation and scooters on sidewalks. TEAM's answer on the Aquatic Centre names Alvarez and Girard as Park Board candidates who would work to keep a full-length pool.
Sources checked October 3, 2026. Official records establish decisions; campaign material establishes stated positions; reporting adds investigation and context. None alone establishes every claim.
No news report opened for this record quotes Alvarez in her own words; Daily Hive quotes the statement she published with Jon Girard, and other reports quote only Girard. The society's website names Alvarez and Girard as the two petitioners in the Aquatic Centre case, while Daily Hive's report on the written ruling names only the society and Girard; the court file and the ruling were not opened, so whether she is a named party is unconfirmed. The society said on September 23, 2026 that it is appealing; no court record of a filed appeal was found. Daily Hive reported demolition was scheduled for October 1, 2026; no report seen on October 3 says whether it began. The transcript Alvarez describes in her September 28 Instagram post was not seen. Her X account and Facebook page, listed by the City, could not be read without signing in. She did not answer the Vote4Tomorrow climate guide, did not appear in the Vancouver Public Space Network Park Board survey as of October 3, and has not added her own profile to VoteMate. The Kerrisdale Community Centre listed her among confirmed speakers for its September 29 forum, but no source read shows that she took part. No Spanish-language coverage naming her was found. The GoFundMe page for the society's legal fund lists a third organizer, Jillian Maguire, who is not named as a petitioner in any source read here. The claim on the candidate page about procurement misconduct names no specific finding, and no independent finding was located.
Research status
What voche.me has checked
Evidence reviewed on October 3, 2026: the City's candidate list, TEAM's candidate page and platform, the statement Alvarez published with Jon Girard on the society's website, her Instagram posts, news reports on the Aquatic Centre case, The West End Journal's party answers, and voter guides and forum listings.
Statements from TEAM, the society's website, VoteMate and Instagram are the campaign's own words. The court case outcome comes from CBC News and Daily Hive.
Checks still to do: open the court file to confirm the named petitioners, and check whether the society's appeal was filed and whether demolition began.
The ballot name, office, ballot number and party label come from the City's final candidate list.
03 / Background
Experience & community
Dates not given
Director, Protecting Our Vancouver Aquatic Centre Society
The society's website names Alvarez as a director and as one of the two people who brought the court case against the City of Vancouver and the Park Board. The TEAM candidate page describes the role as advocating for transparency and accountability in city decisions.
Background in environmental design and architectural conservation
TEAM's August 27, 2026 announcement describes Alvarez's background as environmental design and architectural conservation. No employer is named on either party page.
Proposed questions for a future interview. They have not been sent to the candidate, and no answers have been supplied.
How would you compare renovation and replacement options using cost, capacity and environmental impact?
No response has been submitted.
How would you divide funding between existing-facility maintenance, affordable access and new construction?
No response has been submitted.
Have your own question?
Ask Mayeli Alvarez directly. We send it to the campaign, and publish the reply here if we get one.
05 / About this page
Questions about this page
Facts voche.me can state about Mayeli Alvarez's page itself, answered directly rather than left blank.
Is this an official page for Mayeli Alvarez?
No. This page is researched by voche.me from public sources, listed below, and is separate from Mayeli Alvarez's own campaign.
What is Mayeli Alvarez's ballot number for the 2026 Vancouver election?
Mayeli Alvarez is number 219 on the City of Vancouver's official 2026 ballot for Park Board.
What party did Mayeli Alvarez run with?
Mayeli Alvarez ran for Park Board with TEAM for a Livable Vancouver.
Does Mayeli Alvarez currently hold public office?
Not according to this profile. voche.me has not listed a current public office for Mayeli Alvarez.
How many sources does this Mayeli Alvarez profile cite?
This profile lists 2 sourced references, each with the date voche.me checked it, in the Sources section below.
Has Mayeli Alvarez filed nomination papers for the 2026 election?
voche.me has not yet added a nomination record for Mayeli Alvarez. This does not mean no nomination paper was filed, only that voche.me has not completed that research yet.
Why do some questions on Mayeli Alvarez's page show no answer?
The "Questions & answers" section on this page lists questions voche.me would put to Mayeli Alvarez in a future interview. They have not been sent yet, so the page says plainly that no answer has been supplied instead of leaving the section blank.
When was the election Mayeli Alvarez ran in?
The 2026 Vancouver municipal election, including the Park Board race, was decided on October 17, 2026.
06 / Candidate contributions
Space for campaign updates
Added her own statements and corrected the court case description
Added the September 1, 2026 statement Alvarez published with Jon Girard, with five new commitments from it and from her September 24 Instagram post on Kitsilano Pool; four of her Instagram posts as statements; TEAM's West End Journal answer on the Nelson Park substation as a party position; Daily Hive's September 26 report on the written ruling and the society's appeal; the City's candidate list entry with her social media accounts; and the October 3 West End forum and the October 13 food systems town hall as unconfirmed events. Corrected the court case entries: they described Alvarez as a petitioner as a fact, but Daily Hive's report on the written ruling names only the society and Girard as the parties who brought the case, so the record now gives both accounts. Removed the September 29 Kerrisdale forum from the calendar because it has passed; the organizer listed her as confirmed on September 23, but no source read shows that she took part. Removed a biography paragraph that repeated two later ones.
Tagged every commitment and added independent reporting on the Aquatic Centre case
Merged two pairs of duplicate commitments that restated the same sentence from the campaign page under different ids, split a combined beach-parking-and-dog-parks commitment into two single-issue commitments, tagged every commitment with an issue and whether it is Alvarez's own words, and added CBC News and Yahoo News Canada reporting on the B.C. Supreme Court ruling. No source read quotes Alvarez directly; every report on the court case quotes Jon Girard instead.
