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District of West Vancouver

West Vancouver is a district municipality in the province of British Columbia, Canada.

History

COVID-19

West Vancouver was the second municipality in British Columbia to record cases of COVID-19 in March 2020, following the first reported outbreak at Lynn Valley Care Home in the neighbouring District of North Vancouver.1) On March 12, 2020, long-term care facility Hollyburn House announced they had identified two positive cases among a staff member and resident.2)

Mayor Mary-Ann Booth began instituting closures on March 13, and on March 16 closed all facilities run by the District except for Municipal Hall, police and fire services, the District Operations Centre and Capilano View Cemetery.3) She declared a local state of emergency on March 21, granting the municipal government additional powers to enforce orders issued by provincial health officer Bonnie Henry, including business closures and revocation of business licenses.4)

Vaccine mandates

On October 27, 2021, the district announced a mandatory policy requiring all staff members and volunteers to receive at least two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine as a condition of continued employment.5) According to district spokesperson Donna Powers, the policy was implemented “to raise vaccination rates across the community.” The West Vancouver Police Department received a similar directive on November 2, allowing officers until January 11, 2022, to provide proof of vaccination or be put on leave.6)

Following the January 4, 2022, deadline to show proof of vaccination, 16 district employees were put on unpaid leave with possibility of termination.7)

1)
Crawford, T., & Eagland, N. (2020, March 7). COVID-19: Outbreak at senior care home in North Vancouver, six new cases in B.C. Vancouver Sun. http://archive.today/2020.03.08-181137/https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/covid-19-six-more-cases-in-b-c-outbreak-at-a-care-home-in-north-vancouver
2)
Yuzda, L., & Hall, M. (2020, March 12). Two COVID-19 cases at West Vancouver care home. CityNews Vancouver. https://web.archive.org/web/20221020071333/https://vancouver.citynews.ca/2020/03/12/west-vancouver-care-home-has-two-cases-of-covid-19/
3)
Booth, M.-A. (2020, March 16). Mayor’s Update: the District’s Coronavirus response. District of West Vancouver. http://archive.today/2023.03.18-192418/http://click.mailsender05.com/m/e12118abd9d779aae7b5812b1e7c2978/m/8aebf780a3753989c9d5e6ff765204a1/
4)
Bengtson, B. (2020, March 21). West Vancouver declares local state of emergency. North Shore News. http://archive.today/2022.10.20-070902/https://www.nsnews.com/local-news/west-vancouver-declares-local-state-of-emergency-3119524
5)
District of West Vancouver announces mandatory vaccination for all employees and volunteers. (2021, October 27). District of West Vancouver. http://archive.today/2022.10.20-072143/https://westvancouver.ca/news/district-west-vancouver-announces-mandatory-vaccination-all-employees-and-volunteers
6)
Richter, B. (2021, November 2). West Vancouver police to face mandatory vaccinations. North Shore News. http://archive.today/2022.10.20-072828/https://www.nsnews.com/coronavirus-covid-19-local-news/west-vancouver-police-to-face-mandatory-vaccinations-4700103
7)
Richter, B. (2022, January 6). District of West Vancouver puts 16 staff on unpaid leave for defying vaccine mandate. North Shore News. http://archive.today/2022.10.20-071901/https://www.nsnews.com/local-news/district-of-west-vancouver-puts-16-staff-on-unpaid-leave-for-defying-vaccine-mandate-4930100
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