Prince George’s mayor is looking to represent the city on the international stage.
At the first council meeting of 2025 on Monday, Jan. 13, Mayor Simon Yu said he has been invited to the Smart City Summit Expo in Taipei, Taiwan from March 18 to 22.
According to a letter from Lihsin Angel Liu, director general of the Taipei Economic & Cultural Office in Vancouver, attached to the meeting agenda, the summit “will bring together municipal leaders from around the world to exchange ideas on how cities can leverage innovation to create renewable and sustainable urban environments.”
Taiwan would pay for mayor’s accommodations and reimburse him for his flights, meaning the trip would have no cost to Prince George taxpayers.
At the 2024 summit, Canadian representatives from Maple Ridge, Ottawa and Brandon, Man. attended.
Once he has returned, Yu said he would give a report on what he learned during the summit at a future council meeting.
Coun. Garth Frizzell said that the city needs to do a “full court press” on economic development and praised Yu’s willingness to travel two months into a “new world order” — likely referring to the second presidency of Donald Trump which starts on Jan. 20.
Other councillors said they were in favour of the trip, largely for economic reasons.
Coun. Kyle Sampson said he wondered if it would make sense to send representatives from city administration to the trip, but Yu said he was concerned about the budgetary implications.
However, the mayor said he had reached out to the provincial government to see if it was willing to assist with his trip.
A motion put forward from Coun. Brian Skakun signalling council’s support for the trip passed unanimously.
