Mayoral Candidate Rebecca Bligh’s Commitment to the Centre (A Letter to Filipino BC)
OCTOBER 8, 2026
On October 7, 2026, we wrote to every mayoral and council candidate with three concrete asks for municipal support for the Filipino Community & Cultural Centre.
Mayoral candidate Rebecca Bligh and the Vote Vancouver have responded. Here’s what they’ve committed to:
To the Board and members of Filipino BC,
Thank you for your letter and for the opportunity to respond. My answer is simple: yes. I support a permanent, purpose-built Filipino Community & Cultural Centre at 396 SW Marine Drive, and if elected mayor, I will work to make it happen.
For decades, Filipino Vancouverites have built this city as nurses, caregivers, workers, entrepreneurs, artists and neighbours, without a civic home of their own. That gap is overdue to close. Your Weaving Our Voices report, built on more than 2,000 responses, is exactly the kind of community-led groundwork a project like this needs. I have visited BARYO Collective since it opened on October 4, and seeing it in person made clear the demand is real and that Filipino BC can deliver.
This is a commitment I have held for years. In June 2023, I was proud to bring forward the first motion to council supporting a Filipino cultural centre in Vancouver. I remain steadfast in that ambition, and I believe the Centre should be a collaborative project, brought to life in and with the community.
This project also reflects how I believe the City should work: alongside the federal and provincial governments, not on the sidelines. The Province has announced its support, and the federal government has named the Centre a priority under the Build Communities Strong Fund. As president of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, I spent two years at the table with federal ministers working to get exactly these kinds of community projects built. Vancouver should be at that table as a full partner. Here is my response to each of your three requests.
1. Expediting rezoning and approvals
Yes. If elected, I will bring forward a motion directing staff to prioritize the rezoning and permitting needed for residential and affordable housing at 396 SW Marine Drive, with a dedicated staff team and a clear timeline so the project can break ground as early as next year.
A project that combines a cultural centre, a neighbourhood food hub and affordable housing on a major transit corridor is exactly what Vancouver should be fast-tracking. Faster process does not mean less listening. South Vancouver residents will have a full opportunity to be heard, and I will respect that process as council must. But a community-serving project of this scale should not wait years in a queue.
2. The City as a funding partner
I believe the City should be a partner. The federal and provincial governments have stepped up, and the City should be at the table with them. If elected, I will direct staff to work with Filipino BC and Hungerford Properties to explore what a City contribution could look like, including through a Community Amenity Contribution as part of the rezoning. The form and scale of any contribution would be decided by council through the approvals and budget processes.
I have long argued that the City's land and tools like amenity contributions are the leverage to unlock federal and provincial investment in community infrastructure and affordable housing. This project is a clear example, and I want to make sure South Vancouver doesn't leave federal and provincial dollars on the table.
3. Program and operational funding before the doors open
I support this in principle. You are right that a building alone does not make a community centre. The programs, partnerships and people that bring it to life have to be built first, and Filipino BC has carried that work for three years largely on its own.
As mayor, I would be one vote on council, and City funding decisions go through the budget and grant processes. Within that, I will ask staff to identify how Filipino BC can be supported during the planning and construction period, including through the City's existing community and cultural grant programs. I will also use my relationships with the provincial and federal governments to advocate for pre-opening operating support alongside their capital commitments.
The Filipino community has waited long enough for a place to call its own. As mayor, I will work to ensure the City partners in getting it built.
Maraming salamat,
Rebecca Bligh
Candidate for Mayor, Vote Vancouver
We’re grateful to Rebecca Bligh and the Vote Vancouver for making this commitment toward the Filipino Cultural Centre and for recognizing the significant contributions and impact of the Filipino community, as well as the importance of having a permanent home for our community. This project has been more than three years in the making, shaped by the voices, work, advocacy, and support of so many people across our community.
As we hear from the other mayoral and council candidates in response to our October 7 letter, we’ll keep you updated on their commitments and what they are proposing for the Centre. Thank you to everyone who has continued to believe in this vision, speak up for it, and help move it forward — we’re building this together.
