Funding to save Vancouver Car Free Days unanimously approved by council

The entrance to a previous year's Car Free Day event in Vancouver is seen in this photo from the event's website. (carfreevancouver.org)

Vancouver city council voted unanimously Tuesday to approve $30,000 in funding to prevent the cancellation of a popular summer event this year.

Car Free Vancouver Society—which typically runs summer festivals that see crowds pour onto Main Street and Commercial Drive—said last month that putting the events on this year was not financially feasible, and called them off with a plan to “see how this might transform.”

In response, councillors Lucy Maloney and Sean Orr tabled an urgent motion asking the city to grant the society the amount of funding it said was required to “save” the events.

“We should be able to find the relatively modest funding needed to keep one of Vancouver’s most loved community festivals going,” Maloney said at Tuesday’s meeting.

The motion was amended to require the society to tweak some language and to provide an “event delivery plan” before the funding is released.

ABC Coun. Peter Meiszner, who moved the amendment, said he appreciated his colleagues for bringing the motion forward.

“I just want to be clear that I very much want to see this festival happen this year, he said.

“And again, thanks to councillors Maloney and Orr for bringing this as an urgent motion, because it is urgent. And I’m looking forward to the summer.”