If you would like a new home and coach house built for you, such as the one at Broadmoor Boulevard and No. 3 Road, you better be able to read Chinese or, at least, have recently purchased a Chinese for Dummies book.
The construction site has one of the most recent Chinese-only signs discovered by community activist Kerry Starchuk, who continues to campaign for a more effective solution to what she says is exclusionary signage in the city.
This past week, Starchuk led yet another group of national and international media through Richmond to highlight Chinese influence in the community.
Both Nippon TV from Japan and La Presse from Montreal were working on stories about social and economic factors related to Chinese migration, including rising real estate costs, as well as community harmony and integration.
Starchuk showed them the new construction sign at the aforementioned property as an example of what she says is the city dragging its feet on education after Richmond city council chose not to implement a more stringent bylaw to make English mandatory on business signs.
“They got off easy. They said they were going to address it, and get on it right away, but basically they’ve done nothing,” said Starchuk.
Business consultant Rupert Whiting, who followed the Chinese-only sign saga intently over the past two-plus years, joined Starchuk for the media gathering.
Whiting said it’s clear to him the city is, once again, ignoring the issue.
“I’m frustrated at the lack of leadership from the city. It seems people are doing what they want within whatever bylaws exist, even if those bylaws are not fit for purpose.”
Whiting said the city has not been proactive in addressing the sign issue, which he sees as symbolic of the disconnection between new immigrants and established residents.
“This (house) isn’t going to get sold to a non-Mainland Chinese person. They’re not even trying to sell it to a non-Mainland Chinese person. That, to me, is a problem,” said Whiting.
“What we’re asking for is better integration here so we can understand one another,” said Whiting, an English immigrant.
City spokesperson Ted Townsend said a new bylaw on clutter is in the works and the process of education is one that takes time.
“How we will deal with it in the new bylaw is something we are studying as part of drafting the bylaw. We have some options that may be open to us, but more legal and other work needs to be done to see if they are practical and viable,” said Townsend via email.
The city maintains that, using auxiliary staff, it spoke to 2,000 businesses to “encourage” English on all signs. It's also reminding businesses as they apply for business licenses.
The clutter bylaw, expected to come to council in early 2016, is intended to clear up additional, unregulated signage on street fronts, regardless of language (although it effectively targets Chinese-oriented shops).
Cecilia Achiam, director of administration and compliance, said further study is needed to see what regulatory options are available for real estate/construction signage.
Starchuk said the city continues to operate on a complaint-driven mandate and, as such, the problem has only grown over the last 15-20 years.
Townsend said the difference between now and then (before Starchuk’s 2013 petition) is that the city is reaching out to more businesses.
The News called Land to Sky Construction, the Broadmoor property’s developer, to ask if the city had consulted with the company vis-à-vis the preference for English on signs.
A man, who would not reveal his name, said the city had not consulted with the company.
Land to Sky is a licensed residential builder and can be found in the B.C. government’s public builders’ registry. Zhi Yong Chen — a realtor for New Coast Realty — is listed as the company’s contact and its office is located in Richmond.
The man told the News his company, after speaking to Starchuk, would soon be erecting signs with English on them.
