FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Prince George, B.C. – Representatives from Prince George City Council and administration spent a busy week in Vancouver attending the 2026 Union of British Columbia Municipalities (UBCM) convention, where they advocated for priorities affecting Prince George and the region.
From September 14 to 18, Council and staff advocated for solutions to issues affecting Prince George and the region, including an on-campus helipad at UHNBC and changes to the northern homeowner grant.
Other highlights from the week include:
- Council attended face-to-face meetings with provincial ministers and crown corporations including Attorney General, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General, Minister of Finance, Minister of Health, Minister of Forestry, Minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs, Minister of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship and Minister of Children and Family Development. Meetings were also held with BC Hydro, BC Assessment, Parliamentary Secretary for Armed Forces Development and Veterans Affairs, and Parliamentary Secretary for Seniors' Services and Long-Term Care.
- Council brought forward ten resolutions to be voted on by the UBCM membership. The resolutions that made it to the floor were all endorsed and covered topics including additional resource allocation for BC crown counsel, strengthening northern British Columbia’s transportation corridors to drive major projects, creation of an Indigenous-led housing alliance, preservation and revitalization of strategic provincial Prince George rail corridor, amending the depreciation of industrial and electrical power generating facility improvements regulation and the northern and rural homeowner grant benefit. The ones that were not admitted for debate, included, keeping BC forestry competitive, restricting the access of children to social media and AI chatbots, and capital and service expansion support for child development centres in Northern BC.
- The City was named as one of the winners of the 2026 UBCM Community Excellence Awards. The award was in the excellence in governance category for the CityFest event that has taken place for the last two years.
- Councillor Brian Skakun received a long service award for his 24 years of service in municipal government.
Prince George council members were pleased to have local MLAs also included in several of the face-to-face meetings as well as representatives from the Regional District of Fraser-Fort George and the Lheidli T'enneh First Nation.
The UBCM was formed to provide a common voice for local government across the province and works to develop policies and strategies to tackle the most urgent issues. The convention takes place annually and includes workshops, networking opportunities, and resolutions sessions.
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Media contact:
Kendall Robertson, senior communications advisor
Mobile: 778-349-5393
Email: media@princegeorge.ca