Power 50 — Page 2

Our sixth annual ranking, from numbers 40 to 31.

40. Dr. David T.K. Ho *New
Chairman and CEO / David T.K. Ho Enterprises Ltd.

David Ho, heir to Hong Kong Tobacco’s billions, continues to add to his considerable fortune. In addition to launching Vancouver-based Harmony Airways in 2002, his local business interests now include the University Golf Course at UBC, an organic greenhouse in Richmond, MCL Motor Cars—and several undisclosed ventures (Ho’s conglomerate is privately owned). Coupled with his financial might is his considerable guanxi, or network, that spans North America and Asia. The ability to call on Jimmy Pattison (No. 4) for business advice, get Rob Feenie to design a business-class menu for Harmony, or have friend Jackie Chan promote the airline just hint at the extent of his connections. If China grants Approved Destination Status to Canada and Transport Canada gives the nod to their air service, Harmony hopes to launch direct flights to Shanghai and Beijing in the New Year—and steal a share of the estimated two million annual Chinese visitors to Canada.

What’s your best stress-reliever?
Boating. [If he drives his 100-foot yacht as aggressively as his 520-horse-power Porsche, you’d better give him wide berth.]

Who do you bounce ideas off?
Bill Cohen, long-time friend and Secretary of Defence for Bill Clinton; Jimmy Pattison, Bill Dalton, Anthony Von Mandl, John Reynolds, David Chu and Lyall Knott—I am fortunate to have these dear friends.

If you had the power to change one thing about Vancouver, what would it be?
We have a large number of people who are addicted to drugs and the number is growing daily. We need to provide more options for treatment for these people.

39. Jim Sinclair *Down
President / B.C. Federation of Labour

“Books mostly, reading books,” says former journalist Jim Sinclair when asked what he does for relaxation. Sinclair likely had more time for literary pleasures—John Vaillant’s GG winner, The Golden Spruce, being a recent favourite—in 2006 than in years past. It’s been a relatively calm 12 months for the man who’s shepherded B.C.’s unions since 1999—and one for the books, pardon the pun, in terms of successful collective bargaining. By September an unheard-of 98 percent of public service union members had signed on for new contracts, the teacher’s union had voted in favour of permanent B.C. Fed affiliation, and there were rumours of a new almost-détente emerging with the B.C. Liberals—though Sinclair steers clear of such terms. “For five years we fought, and the government finally got the message that respect and not abuse is the answer,” he says with relish. He’s now stirring the political pot with demands to raise the minimum wage, reduce raw log exports and deal with issues related to immigrant labour.

What’s your biggest stress-inducer?
The Liberals.

If you had the power to change one thing about Vancouver, what would it be?
Greed. The poverty in this city is a complete disgrace. In this province we have a quarter of a million people making less than $10 per hour. If minimum wage had gone up at the same rate as CEO salaries since 1990, by now minimum wage would be $23 an hour.

Which leader do you most respect?
Libby Davies—I’ve known her for 30 years. First met her when I was living in the Cobalt Hotel and she came around to organize us. She’s an amazing person. Not once has she stopped making this a better city for those who need it most.

38. Angus Livingstone *New
Managing Director / UBC’s University-Industry Liaison Office

Match-maker, bridge-builder, midwife: whatever the appropriate analogy is, UBC’s University-Industry Liaison Office (UILO), led by managing director Angus Livingstone, is the leading technology transfer office in Canada and consistently helps UBC earn a top-10 ranking in surveys of North American universities securing high-quality U.S. patents. Their job is to identify and nurture commercially promising research at the university, providing business development guidance and helping make connections with investors or buyers. At last count, the UILO had over 250 licenses and assignments and has birthed 120 spin-off companies since forming in the mid-’80s—71 are still active, employing some 2,000 people. Notables include health-related companies like QLT and Neuromed; environmentally friendly companies such as Westport Innovations and Ostara Nutrient Recovery Technologies; and tech companies such as Webnames.ca and WebCT. (Licensing revenue from QLT alone has amountsed to more than $50 million to date.) Dr. Donald Rix, a former UBC pathology professor and biotech entrepreneur, has described Livingstone in his role as “the heart and soul of tech transfer in B.C.”

Which leader do you most respect?
Captain Picard. A student of history, science and the classics; the consummate diplomat; and a clear thinker who takes counsel, considers alternatives and then acts decisively. And he also drinks Earl Grey tea—hot.

What was your personal lowlight from the past year?
I am an incorrigible optimist—I only have lowlights when I drive in the fog.

What’s the one thing you feel absolutely powerless over?
George Bush and U.S. foreign policy: Oops, I guess that is two things.

37. Kathleen Bartels *Up
Director / Vancouver Art Gallery

Last year’s Power List had the Vancouver Art Gallery’s director promising the fate of the VAG would be announced in early 2006, but as of this writing no decision had been made about the gallery’s long-anticipated move. Several downtown locations are under review and Bartels says a list of potential architects has been conceived. With over 9,000 works in its permanent collection and admissions revenue from 2006 hitting $2 million (the highest in the gallery’s 75-year history), “we’ve outgrown this space.” And growth has been Bartels’ specialty: October’s 75th Anniversary auction raised more than $1 million for the gallery’s endowment fund, which has swelled from $200,000 to $5 million during her five-year tenure. This summer, she will deliver over 70 works from Monet to Dali that she says will outstrip in scale and scope anything the city has seen.

What’s your best stress-reliever?
I’m a runner; I’ve done several half marathons this year. And also time with my eight-year-old son Nicholas.

What was your personal highlight from the past year?
I think the Brian Jungen and Takao Tanabe opening. There were thousands of people here—and it was pouring rain.

What’s the one thing you feel absolutely powerless over?
The space constraints in this building.

36. Paul Lee *Down
President / Electronic Arts Worldwide Studios

EA stood at a crossroads when Burnaby’s Paul Lee took over from long-time friend Don Mattrick last year as head of the world’s largest video game publisher. They’d both joined EA 15 years ago through the acquisition of Distinctive Software and grown with the company, which now has 6,500 employees and revenues surpassing $3 billion. Besides navigating the changes necessary for a new generation of high-powered gaming consoles, EA is aggressively pursuing advancement in key segments such as online gaming, as well as mobile gaming and PC Gaming through their acquisition of JAMDAT and Mythic Entertainment. But more striking is their strategic shift from replicating games based on sports or movie franchises to games created from their own intellectual property, such as Spore. As part of this effort they’ve enlisted the creative might of Steven Spielberg to help with three new titles.

What’s your No. 1 priority in 2007?
At EA, our top priority is making fun games for the Xbox 360, the PlayStation 3 and Nintendo’s Wii. Videogame players are upgrading to incredibly powerful new technology—consoles that allow us to play online, on HDTV—and in the very near future, virtually all games will be playable on high-speed connections.

Who do you bounce ideas off?
My primary sounding board is my staff, but I also trust the co-chairman of the Premier’s Technology Council, Greg Peet, and my good friend, mentor and business partner, Milt Wong. Finally, I work with the film school at the University of Southern California, a role that has allowed me to build a lot of valuable contacts in the entertainment industry.

What’s the one thing you feel absolutely powerless over?

I feel absolutely powerless when someone a third of my age clobbers me in an online computer game!

35. Donald Brenner *Down
Chief Justice / B.C. Supreme Court

While fellow B.C. Supreme Court Justice James Williams presides over the Pickton trial, Chief Justice Brenner keeps the B.C. court system running. This year, Brenner found himself busy lamenting the increasing costs of going to court, denying a petition to change the laws limiting legal aid to the poor, and ruling to deflect defamation charges in a case against the romantic partner of fellow justice Mary Marvyn Koenigsberg. But the real headline-grabbing news came in late October, when the Chief Justice got into a war of words with Attorney General Wally Oppal. Oppal had complained publicly a month earlier about how lengthy delays in the trial process were eroding public confidence in the court system. Brenner was not amused. In an email to the A-G, he wrote: “I must tell you that for the chief law officer of the province to attack the superior trial court of this province by using such unfounded and misleading language is unacceptable.” Responded Oppal: “This is a slight overreaction, and it’s not my intention to get into a public dispute with the Chief Justice.” Um, too late.

34. Larry Blain *Down
CEO / Partnerships B.C.

After the furious pace of its first two years of operation, when more than $4 billion in deals were signed, Partnerships B.C.—the provincial crown corporation charged with finding and developing private-public partnerships (P3s)—took a bit of a breather in 2006. The Sea-to-Sky highway is well underway, as is the Canada Line, while the first of the province’s P3 healthcare facilities—the Diamond Centre at VGH—opened in October. The VGH expansion is thought by many to be the future of P3s in B.C.—especially given Finance Minister Carole Taylor’s (No. 5) warning in September that, in a decade’s time, health spending could well consume three-quarters of her budget. Larry Blain takes the lead on the B.C. Liberals’ quest for private-sector partners and reports directly to Taylor. In 2005, the former banker and economist earned almost $500,000 for his efforts.

Which leader do you most respect?
“That’s easy—my boss, Gordon Campbell.”

What was your personal highlight from the past year?
Receiving recognition that B.C. is the leader in public-private partnerships in North America.

What was your personal lowlight?
Going through the security process at JFK Airport.

33. Ken Dobell *Down
Special Advisor to Premier

During the course of his 35 years in public service, Ken Dobell filled the roles held by three members of this year’s Power 50—City Manager, CEO of GVTA (TransLink), and Deputy Minister to the Premier. “Truly interesting, though, is that all three positions are now filled by women,” notes Dobell. Since retiring from government last year, he continues to be active in major projects that shape our province, in part by working under contract as special advisor to the premier. Though largely finished with his involvements in the Canada Line, the Gateway Program and the softwood lumber negotiations, he continues with major projects for both the province and the city. Coastal forest revitalization, ports development, creation of a cultural precinct in downtown Vancouver and housing for the poor are now on his front burner. If that weren’t enough, he also acts as chair of the Vancouver Convention Centre Expansion Project, lay bencher for the Law Society of B.C., a director of VANOC (and chair of their finance committee), and serves as chair of the 2010 Legacies Now Society.

What’s your No. 1 priority in 2007?
I have four important projects, two for the city and two for the province—would like to finalize them all!

What was your personal highlight from the past year?
The softwood lumber deal.

What’s your biggest stress-inducer?
Running out of cigarettes.

32. Peter & Shahram Malek *New
Directors / Millennium OV Properties LTD

The Malek brothers have several landmarks in their portfolio, including the restored Province Building near Victory Square, the seven-tower City in the Park near Burnaby’s Edmonds SkyTrain station, L’Hermitage en Ville at Richards and Georgia, and a grand-style building near Park Royal in West Vancouver. But Millennium astounded the competition in April when their $193-million bid for the Olympic athletes’ village pummeled offers from Concord Pacific and Wall Financial. Not only did the losing companies have much longer track records in Vancouver, but the winning bid was far above any price (per square foot) ever paid here. Once people did the math, they wondered what would become of the city’s idyllic vision for southeast False Creek: an environmentally sustainable village with some housing for average folks. “When the city sold that land for $193 million, they pulled the rug out from under affordability,” says the project’s marketer, Bob Rennie, speaking some realpolitik for his developers. The site plan, allowable number of units and building designs are still being worked out, leaving hope that money doesn’t completely trump ideals.

31. Arthur Erickson *New
Founder / Arthur Erickson Architect

2006 was a helluva year for Vancouver’s best-dressed architect. A major show at the Vancouver Art Galley, accompanied by the publication of Arthur Erickson: Critical Works, began to explain this opaque man to the city he helped create. And Vancouver’s increasing obsession with all things “sustainable” and “livable” only goes to show that Erickson’s devotion to landscape—the hallmark of his career—was right on the money all along. Several projects are lined up, including two buildings in the 2010 Olympic Village—a gig that realtor pal Bob Rennie scored for him after Yale’s architectural giant Robert Stern was handed his hat. Running up to the Olympics, “The Erickson” condo is slotted for completion in 2008, and a 600-foot helical tower at 1133 West Georgia, which the architect has already dubbed “the most interesting building in the city” (eat your heart out, Shangri-La!), is slotted for 2009.

What was your personal highlight from the past year?
The exhibit of my work at the Vancouver Art Gallery.

What was your personal lowlight?
Income tax.

If you had the power to change one thing about Vancouver, what would it be?
The general attitude of complacency that affects everything.

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