OneCity proposes $3M Vancouver business and investment office

OneCity mayoral candidate William Azaroff says the party would create a $3-million Business & Investment Office if elected in Vancouver’s October 2026 civic election. The proposed office would support local companies seeking to grow and work with regional agency Invest Vancouver, effectively restoring a municipal investment-attraction function after the Vancouver Economic Commission was wound down in 2023.

The Vancouver Economic Commission, established in 1995 as a City-funded arm’s-length organization, had an annual budget of about $3 million and about 20 staff before it was dissolved. The organization promoted the city internationally and supported investment in sectors including film, technology and clean technology. The City said at the time that its core functions would move under the City Manager’s Office, while Invest Vancouver would handle regional investment attraction.

Following the dissolution, the City redirected $1 million annually to in-house economic development work, including $855,000 for a Business and Economy Office with about five staff and $145,000 for an Indigenous Economic Prosperity function. OneCity says its proposal would return municipal spending on economic development and investment attraction to roughly its former level.

The party also says it would seek to reform and stabilize Invest Vancouver, which had an operating budget of about $4.75 million in 2025 and narrowly avoided cuts. Surrey has filed a petition in the Supreme Court of British Columbia challenging the regional agency’s existence.

Other measures include an Entrepreneur Liaison Office to help small and medium-sized businesses navigate permits, licences and government funding, plus a citywide micro-grant program for businesses and non-profits. OneCity has not released the proposed fund size, grant amounts or eligibility rules.

The plan also calls for a three-year “Buy Vancouver” procurement pilot. Under a proposed Good Jobs Procurement Standard, City contracts would consider wages, safety, apprenticeships and local and inclusive hiring, rather than only the lowest bid.