New Westminster, B.C. (September 8, 2026) — The New Westminster Progressives have released Heritage Plan: Distinctly New West, a commitment to protect New Westminster’s heritage while welcoming new housing, new neighbours and continued growth.
“New Westminster has a strong sense of place, and that is worth protecting,” says Karima Budhwani, NWP council candidate. “Our heritage is more than buildings. It includes our neighbourhoods, cultural institutions, civic traditions and the stories of the people and communities that helped shape this city.”
The plan commits an NWP Council to deliver a comprehensive Heritage Plan within its first 18 months, modernize the City’s approach to heritage preservation, strengthen resident input, recognize the full diversity of New Westminster’s heritage and build on heritage as an economic asset.
“New Westminster can grow without losing what makes it distinct,” says Daniel Fontaine, NWP mayoral candidate and current New Westminster councillor. “We can welcome new housing and new neighbours while carrying forward the history, character and community traditions that make this city special.”
The NWP Heritage Plan: Distinctly New West includes five platform areas:
- Deliver a Heritage Plan in 18 Months New Westminster is not starting from scratch. The City has already done years of heritage work, including the Queen’s Park Heritage Conservation Area and work to refresh the City’s 2011 Heritage Revitalization Agreement (HRA) Policy. That refresh began in 2021 but has been paused since May 2022 due to City staffing constraints, with no revised completion date set.
This work doesn’t need to be redone. It needs to move. We will finish the unfinished work, address outstanding issues, and deliver a comprehensive Heritage Plan within our first 18 months, with clear actions and timelines and annual public reporting on progress.
We will continue supporting the Queen’s Park Heritage Conservation Area and work with neighbourhoods to establish additional Heritage Conservation Areas where there is demonstrated community support.
- Make Heritage Preservation Practical – New Westminster already has tools to encourage heritage preservation, but some are complicated, unfinished or have been affected by changes in provincial housing legislation.
Through the 18-month Heritage Plan, we will modernize the City’s approach to heritage preservation, integrate Heritage considerations into City planning where appropriate, complete unfinished work on Heritage Revitalization Agreements, and identify practical incentives and simpler City processes that make heritage preservation easier.
- Put Residents Back at the Table As development processes change, residents should not lose their voice in decisions affecting our heritage.
Under the province’s Bill 44 (Housing Statutes (Residential Development) Amendment Act, 2023), the City can no longer hold public hearings on residential rezonings that are consistent with the Official Community Plan. Where this has removed a public hearing residents would once have had, we will provide meaningful opportunities for residents to have input on heritage features and streetscapes within the City’s authority.
The Community Heritage Commission is a separate advisory body from the subject-matter committees being re-established under our governance reforms. We will strengthen its role in providing timely advice to Council and ensure heritage considerations and community input happen early, before important City decisions are too far along.
- Heritage Belongs to Everyone New Westminster’s heritage is broad and diverse. It includes Indigenous history and heritage, our buildings and streetscapes, and the people, communities, institutions, traditions and stories that have shaped New Westminster over generations. Through the Heritage Plan, we will ensure our shared history is recognized and carried forward. This includes long-standing civic traditions such as May Day, Hyack and the Anvil Battery salute, cultural institutions such as Royal City Musical Theatre and the New Westminster Symphony Orchestra, community organizations, and the histories and experiences of the many communities, including Indigenous communities, that have made New Westminster home.
- Build on Our Heritage as an Economic Asset New Westminster already has heritage attractions, walking tours, museums, historic neighbourhoods and traditions worth discovering. We will do more to connect and promote them – including working with local heritage, tourism and community partners to develop a made-in-New West self-guided tour of unique heritage sites. This will include integrating and expanding QR codes on public infrastructure to provide easy access to heritage information on key sites throughout the city.
We will develop a coordinated approach to heritage tourism, working with Tourism New Westminster, heritage organizations and local businesses to connect our historic places, streetscapes, cultural institutions, festivals and traditions in ways that attract visitors and support local businesses.
Growing Without Losing Who We Are
New Westminster will continue to grow and change. We can welcome new housing and new neighbours while protecting the heritage that makes our city distinctive.
Our history belongs to all of us. Let’s make sure it remains part of our future.
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