Resources, City Spotlights New Westminster

City Spotlight: New Westminster, BC

New Westminster (British Columbia, Canada), the oldest incorporated city in western Canada, has an estimated population of 94,000. It is a culturally and ethnically diverse community. Based on the 2021 Census, people who immigrated comprised 37.5% of the city’s population, and 63.8% of the city’s population growth between 2016 and 2021. Additionally, in 2021, 46.8% of the city’s population self-identified as a visible minority, with the largest groups being Chinese (23.3%), South Asian (22.2%) and Filipino (18.6%).

Categories:

What is the local government concerned about?

The local government is concerned about the increasing division and polarisation related to the three crises of homelessness, mental health and substance use. Residents and businesses are expressing concern and becoming more vocal and mobilised in opposing initiatives aimed at addressing them, including emergency shelters, harm reduction services and supportive housing developments. People experiencing these crises, many of whom have histories of trauma, are sometimes framed in public discourse as posing risks to livability, public safety or economic vitality.

Discrimination, division, hate and racism exacerbate these dynamics, serving to limit the contributions of certain segments of the community, including immigrants and racialised community members, and more recently, people experiencing homelessness, mental health and substance use issues. They also serve to limit interventions which can contribute to enhanced quality of life for these community members such as stable housing and support services. Of particular concern is the spread of misinformation, much of it online, where public discourse at times portrays housing and health interventions as disruptive to neighbourhood cohesion or community well-being.

How is the local government responding?

The City of New Westminster has taken a proactive and evolving approach to embracing diversity and promoting inclusion. This has included the establishment of a Multiculturalism Advisory Committee and Welcoming and Inclusive New West (WINS) in 2008; the first official apology by a Canadian municipality to the Chinese community for past wrongs in 2010; the establishment of New West Pride in 2010; the implementation of Safe Harbour training for all City staff in 2012/13; and the launch of an annual Newcomers Festival and Information Fair in 2016.

Building on this foundation, the City has implemented a set of targeted policies, programs and partnerships to strengthen inclusion, address discrimination and support community safety.

Sanctuary City Policy

In July 2021, the City Council endorsed the Sanctuary City Policy. The intent of the policy is to support community members with uncertain, precarious or no immigration status to access City facilities, programs and services with the knowledge that the City will not ask for information about their immigration status or share it with federal immigration authorities. The working group that developed the policy, which included people with lived experience, delivered training on the policy to senior leaders. The School District has also endorsed a Sanctuary School Policy, which ensures that all children living in the community, regardless of their immigration status, can access education without fear of their information being shared with federal immigration authorities.

Welcome Centre

The City and School District applied for a dedicated community space under the Province’s Neighbourhood Learning Centre Program as part of the redevelopment of New Westminster Secondary School. The application was successful and dedicated community spaces included a 2,500 square foot Welcome Centre. The City funds the Community Navigator position within the Welcome Centre and the School District covers all other operating costs. Opened in September 2021, the Welcome Centre facilitates programs and workshops for new immigrants and refugees; holds multicultural celebrations; and hosts anti-hate and anti-racism events. On an annual basis, the Community Navigator has over 300 client interactions.

Coordinated Leadership and Partnerships

The City chairs the WINS Local Immigration Partnership Council, and in conjunction with settlement organisations, has implemented a number of anti-hate and anti-racism events and measures. The City is also a Spokes community, and a member of the Resilience BC Anti-Racism Network, a provincially funded public program that supports local governments and communities to prevent and respond to hate, racism and discrimination. For example, it updated the ‘Community Protocol Response to Hate Crimes or Incidents Motivated by Hate,’ and translated it into the most commonly spoken non-English languages.

The City also works closely with the New Westminster Homelessness Coalition Society, which represents over 20 organisations with a mandate or interest in responding to homelessness. A significant component of this work is addressing misinformation and stigma associated with homelessness and the related crises of mental health and substance use. As part of Homelessness Action Week in October 2025, the City and Coalition collaborated on a Voices in Action event, which included a panel discussion on homelessness and people with lived experience of homelessness sharing their stories, thus changing the narrative to one of hope, resilience and success.

Crises Response Pilot Project & Crises Response Roadmap

Through the Crises Response Pilot Project and the Council-approved Crises Response Roadmap, the City works with service providers, health partners and enforcement agencies to address safety and livability impacts in public spaces while prioritising harm reduction, outreach and prevention. Crises Response Pilot Project includes practical, safety-focused measures in public spaces, including proactive outreach and engagement, bylaw compliance, sanitation and cleanliness initiatives, human waste and biohazard removal, and fire prevention efforts. These actions are designed to reduce risks and community impacts while prioritising harm reduction and connection to services for people experiencing crisis.

Complementing this operational work, City Council approved a Crises Response Roadmap in 2025, which formalises a coordinated approach to public safety and partnership-building in response to resident and business concerns, and strengthens collaboration across municipal departments, service providers and other levels of government. The City’s broader homelessness response, delivered in partnership with BC Housing and local service organisations, similarly frames housing and support interventions as central to public safety and community well-being, recognising that addressing stigma, misinformation and unmet needs contributes to safer, healthier public spaces for all residents.

What’s next?

Looking ahead, the City of New Westminster remains committed to strengthening its efforts to address discrimination, division, hate and racism through sustained, coordinated action. Building on existing initiatives and partnerships, New Westminster will continue to advance approaches that promote inclusion, social cohesion and community safety, while ensuring that all residents feel welcome and supported.

Through its recent membership in the Strong Cities Network, New Westminster is expanding its capacity to collaborate with municipal leaders and practitioners at the national and international levels. This engagement supports shared learning, capacity-building and the development of effective strategies and protocols for responding to hate-motivated incidents, polarisation and related harms. It reflects the City’s understanding that these challenges extend beyond local boundaries and that meaningful, long-term progress requires coordination across jurisdictions and all levels of government.

To learn more

Explore or Search for City Spotlights

Search for spotlights by city names or themes

Canada

Nitra

Is your city a Strong City?

Strong Cities membership is open to local authorities at the city, municipal or other subnational level. Membership is free of charge.

Join the Network

City Spotlight: New Westminster, BC

What is the local government concerned about?

How is the local government responding?

What’s next?

Explore or Search for City Spotlights

New Westminster

Tunis

Berlin

Fuenlabrada

Los Angeles

Prizren

Albuquerque (NM)

Columbus (OH)

Nineveh

Weißenfels

Lviv

Nitra

Is your city a Strong City?