VANCOUVER, B.C. — Green Councillor Pete Fry is reaffirming the origins and purpose of Vancouver’s Renter Advocacy Office following a recent Council motion calling to re-establish tenant advocacy services that were previously dismantled by the current Council majority.

Working with Pete Fry, newly elected councillor Lucy Maloney’s motion to resurrect the Renter’s Office repackages the original Renter’s Office vision that Fry presented and secured Council approval for in 2019, which was a landmark initiative that made Vancouver one of the first cities in Canada to directly invest in renter advocacy, education, and enforcement support. The office was summarily eliminated when ABC came to power.

“When The Renter Office was created in 2019, Council recognized that renters needed real, city-backed support. Not just advice, but advocacy, education, and enforcement capacity. That vision was debated, funded, and approved by Council,” said Councillor Fry.

A Proven Model, Dismantled, Not Failed

In 2019, Council approved a comprehensive renter protection framework that included:

• A community-based Renter Centre co-locating city services and non-profit partners
• A City-run Renter Advocacy and Services Team
• A multi-year funding program for non-profit renter advocacy organizations
• Dedicated investment from Empty Homes Tax revenue

That model was later dismantled by the current ABC-led Council, despite ongoing housing pressures and record levels of displacement.

“The question renters keep asking isn’t whether the model worked, it’s why it was taken away,” Fry added. “We’re now watching Council rediscover ideas it already voted for years ago, after tenants paid the price.”

Renter Protections Require More Than Rhetoric

Fry emphasized that renter advocacy must be treated as core civic infrastructure, not a discretionary program that disappears with political turnover.

“Tenant protections don’t enforce themselves,” he said. “If Council is serious about renter stability, then rebuilding this office isn’t optional, it’s overdue.”

Councillor Fry said he will continue pushing for:

• A fully resourced, permanent Tenant Advocacy Office
• Stable, long-term funding
• Clear accountability and reporting to Council
• A renter-first approach that recognizes housing as a human right

“Renters deserve continuity, not policy amnesia,” Fry said. “This city already showed leadership once. We should be restoring it, not rewriting history.”

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