Michael Wu

Businesses & Jobs

Artificial Intelligence & Data Centres

Liberal promises

Keep AI data centres off Vancouver's scarce and expensive land needed for housing, while supporting Canadian AI capacity elsewhere.

Business Permitting

Liberal promises

Modernize outdated industrial-era zoning and business rules so small businesses can make and sell products in the same space.

Economic Growth

Liberal promises

Establish an Industrial Land Reserve to keep good-paying jobs in Vancouver, surrounded by affordable housing.
Champion Vancouver as the headquarters of a future CANZUK alliance, bringing more jobs, trade, and talent to our city.

Tourism

Liberal promises

Rename YVR as Terry Fox International Airport, in honour of Terry Fox's legacy.

Climate Change, Heat, Fires, & the Environment

Artificial Intelligence & Data Centres

Liberal promises

Keep AI data centres off Vancouver's scarce and expensive land needed for housing, while supporting Canadian AI capacity elsewhere.

Green Space

Liberal promises

Keep the elected Park Board and properly fund it, so our parks are protected from being chopped up and sold off.

Private Vehicles & Parking

Liberal promises

Remove every parking meter in front of beaches and community centres within our first year.

Culture & Events

Festivals & Events

Liberal promises

Find a fair way to make policing costs affordable for community festivals and events, and end Vancouver's 'no fun city' reputation.

Public Art

Liberal promises

Create North America's first Artist Land Reserve in four locations across the city, with studio space and property taxes cut in half.

Tourism

Liberal promises

Rename YVR as Terry Fox International Airport, in honour of Terry Fox's legacy.

Housing & Homelessness

Affordability

Liberal promises

Replace the Vancouver Building Code with the BC Building Code, cutting the costs, wait times, and complexity that make housing slower and more expensive to build.

Every other city in BC uses the BC Building Code, yet Vancouver has its own special code, adding costs, wait times, and complexity to everything from a simple home renovation to a new multi-unit building. This is a big part of why Vancouver's housing costs are so high. We will adopt the BC Building Code, in line with Burnaby, Richmond, Surrey, and our other neighbouring cities.

Consolidate the twelve City departments that approve new housing into one, making applications and approvals faster and simpler.

Homelessness

Liberal promises

Require 24-hour public bathrooms and showers for people who are unhoused in every new supportive housing project.

Property Taxes

Liberal promises

Tax luxury yachts over 40 feet to fund property tax cuts for family doctors, walk-in clinics, food banks, and Vancouver's creative sector.

Public & Assistive Housing

Liberal promises

Reverse the ban on new supportive housing on day one, so seniors, veterans, and people with disabilities get the supports they need.

Local Government, Planning, & Democracy

Artificial Intelligence & Data Centres

Liberal promises

Keep AI data centres off Vancouver's scarce and expensive land needed for housing, while supporting Canadian AI capacity elsewhere.

Budgeting

Liberal promises

Cancel Ken Sim's $800-million Second City Hall and reinvest the money in services that matter, like pools and parks.
Shift spending from managers to front-line services by hiring 400 new unionized workers for garbage pickup, roads, parks, and libraries.
Ban foreign travel for councillors and City staff.
Call for an independent Auditor General investigation into the failed $600-million Art Gallery project and all related spending.

Good Governance

Liberal promises

Create a City of Vancouver Lobbyist Registry, like the ones our federal and provincial governments already have.
Reduce Freedom of Information fees so the public can see what City Hall is doing with their tax dollars.
Launch an independent external review of the Integrity Commissioner's office and strengthen the Code of Conduct for elected officials.
Require politicians to disclose their cryptocurrency holdings and accounts along with their other financial interests.

Public Engagement

Liberal promises

Convene a citizens' assembly to study a ward system for Vancouver, with its recommendations going to a public referendum.

Mental Health, Drugs, & Addiction

Treatment for Addiction

Liberal promises

Push for a long-term methamphetamine strategy for Vancouver and BC focused on safety, treatment, and recovery.

Public Safety & Policing

Non-Police-Based Public Safety

Liberal promises

Declare intimate partner violence a public health and public safety crisis, and support a victim-survivor led action plan to address it.
Support proper staffing, long-term funding, and transparent deployment planning so Vancouver firefighters have the resources they need.

Upstream Causes of Crime

Liberal promises

Crack down on the Bitcoin ATMs and money laundering that fuel the toxic drug trade, organized crime, and street-level disorder.

Ken Sim's approach to safety amounts to "give the police whatever they ask for." While we support our men and women in uniform, this approach isn't working. Crime thrives when there is money to be made, and the spread of Bitcoin ATMs across our city is enabling the toxic drug trade and the violence that comes with it. Ken Sim has promoted Bitcoin at every opportunity, calling it his "hill to die on," while organized crime thrives here. We will go after the root causes of crime through smart, well-considered policy that actually makes our streets safer.

Phase out unregulated currency exchanges and replace payday loan shops with trusted institutions like Pigeon Park Savings.

Public Spaces & Services

Fitness & Sports Facilities

Liberal promises

Make a historic $1.35-billion investment in parks, recreation, and pools.
Build 50-metre pools, not 25-metre pools, at the new Vancouver Aquatic Centre.

Green Space

Liberal promises

Keep the elected Park Board and properly fund it, so our parks are protected from being chopped up and sold off.

Health Infrastructure

Liberal promises

Cut property taxes in half for family doctors and walk-in clinics to attract and keep physicians in Vancouver.

Public Washrooms

Liberal promises

Build new public washrooms across the city, and mobilize new front-line workers to clean up our streets and parks.

Transit & Getting Around

Private Vehicles & Parking

Liberal promises

Remove every parking meter in front of beaches and community centres within our first year.

Transit Projects

Liberal promises

Make finishing the SkyTrain to UBC our top transportation priority.
Cut property taxes by 50% for local businesses during SkyTrain construction, with incentives for landlords to lower rent for affected tenants.

Biography

submitted by the candidate or their team
Michael Wu is seeking election for Vancouver City Council with the Vancouver Liberal team. Michael has been an entrepreneur for more than 30 years, running multiple businesses across the Lower Mainland, and creating jobs in our communities.

He first became a business owner at just 19 years old, and at the height of his career, operated five companies with more than 60 employees.

Through decades of entrepreneurship, Michael came to understand the challenges local businesses face, from rising costs and regulations to the importance of strong local economies that allow families and communities to thrive. He believes Vancouver needs practical leadership at City Hall that supports small businesses, encourages economic growth, and creates opportunities for the next generation.

In 2006, Michael joined the Royal Canadian Mounted Police as an Auxiliary Constable. In this role, Michael provided 24/7 translation services in Mandarin and Cantonese while assisting officers responding to calls across the community. His experience supporting frontline policing gave him direct insight into the real impact crime can have on neighbourhoods and families. He believes that public safety is a fundamental responsibility of government, and that we must do more to protect those who cannot always protect themselves.

Michael has also previously run as a provincial MLA candidate for a major party in British Columbia. During that campaign, he and his children knocked on more than 7,000 doors, speaking directly with residents about the issues affecting their lives. Those conversations reinforced his belief that good public policy begins with listening. By understanding the challenges people face, and working together to find practical solutions, we can create a Vancouver that works for all of us.

For Michael, leadership is also about compassion, empathy, and respect. He believes that strong communities are built when people take the time to understand different perspectives and work toward common ground, especially when supporting the most vulnerable members of society.

As a member of the Vancouver Liberals, Michael has been inspired by our mayoral candidate, Kareem Allam, and his commitment to bringing people together from different backgrounds and viewpoints. Kareem’s focus on thoughtful policy, collaboration, and building bridges reflects the kind of leadership Michael believes Vancouver needs.

See Michael Wu's election promises

Reason for running

submitted by the candidate or their team
Michael is running because he wants to see safer communities, stronger local businesses, and a city where young people and future generations have the opportunity to build their lives in our city.

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