Tim Louis (born August 13, 1958) is a lawyer and municipal politician in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. He was elected to the

Vancouver Park Board The Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation, commonly referred to as the Vancouver Park Board, is the elected board with exclusive possession, jurisdiction and control over public parks in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Established by sect ...

in 1990 and 1993, and later to Vancouver City Council as a member of the Coalition of Progressive Electors (COPE) in 1999 and 2002.

Education, advocacy and professional life

Tim Louis graduated South Delta Secondary School (class of 1976), and went on to attend

Langara College , mottoeng = Knowledge is Freedom , established = April 1, 1994 , type = Public , endowment = C$5.8 million , administrative_staff = , faculty = , president = Paula Burns , students = 22,000 , city = Vancouver, British Columbia , coun ...

(class of 1979) and the University of British Columbia where he graduated from law school in 1983. While a student at UBC, he co-founded the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC), a consumer watchdog nonprofit. He articled with lawyer and then-city councillor Harry Rankin in 1984. He also served on the board of BC Transit's paratransit service and was chair of the Vancouver Public Library Board.

Political career

In 1990, Louis was elected to the Vancouver Board of Parks & Recreation and re-elected in 1993. First elected to Vancouver City Council in 1999, Louis became known for his pointed questions aimed at addressing issues of social justice in the city of Vancouver. He was re-elected in 2002. Louis proudly showed off his progressive beliefs, often appearing at public functions in a red Che Guevara shirt. Louis has been a critic of large government projects, including the Richmond-Airport-Vancouver rapid transit project and the

2010 Olympic Winter Games )'' , nations = 82 , athletes = 2,626 , events = 86 in 7 sports (15 disciplines) , opening = February 12, 2010 , closing = February 28, 2010 , opened_by = Governor General Michaëlle Jean , cauldron = Catriona Le May DoanNancy GreeneWayne Gretz ...

, but always in the spirit of protecting community priorities. He also takes a public stance on local and international causes; for example he has been an open critic of the U.S blockade of Cuba and the Israeli blockade of Gaza. In the 2005 municipal election, Louis attracted attention when he told the '' Vancouver Sun'' editorial board that he favoured establishing a city-owned non-profit

brothel A brothel, bordello, ranch, or whorehouse is a place where people engage in sexual activity with prostitutes. However, for legal or cultural reasons, establishments often describe themselves as massage parlors, bars, strip clubs, body rub par ...

to help protect sex-trade workers. He lost his council seat in that election, finishing 17th with 43,349 votes. In 2008, Louis ran for a nomination for city council within COPE, as part of a 'Keep It COPE' slate; he narrowly lost by six votes to Ellen Woodsworth. She along with David Cadman went on to become elected to council as part of COPE's combined slate with the Green Party and

Vision Vancouver Vision Vancouver is a green liberal municipal political party in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Vision was formed in the months leading up to the 2005 municipal election. Formation Vision was founded by former Coalition of Progress ...

. Louis sought re-election as a Vancouver city councillor in the municipal election of 2011 but lost, coming in 17th, with 43,926 votes.

Personal life

Louis' long-time partner is Penny Parry, an artist and community advocate. They live in

Kitsilano Kitsilano () is a neighbourhood located in the city of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Kitsilano is named after Squamish chief August Jack Khatsahlano, and the neighbourhood is located in Vancouver's West Side along the south shore of Engli ...

, a West Side neighbourhood of Vancouver.

References

External links

Tim Louis & Company

Tim Louis's website

COPE website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Louis, Tim Coalition of Progressive Electors councillors Lawyers in British Columbia Living people 1958 births Langara College people