Former Vancouver councillor and park commissioner Tim Louis has been on the executive of the Coalition of Progressive Electors (COPE) for as long as he can remember.

But when COPE held its last annual general assembly this month, Louis didn’t seek another term on the board.

“It was time to make room for new ideas and fresh blood,” Louis told the Georgia Straight in a phone interview.

Even though he’s no longer on the leadership of Vancouver’s oldest progressive organization, Louis said that he’ll remain active in COPE.

Known for his sharp one-liners, the firebrand is a staunch advocate of giving communities a voice in the development of their neighbourhoods.

Louis regards the ruling Vision Vancouver party and its main rival, the Non-Partisan Association, as two peas in the pod because of their pro-developer agenda.

“Vision Vancouver is the NPA with bicycles,” Louis said at a Vancouver event in 2013.

Louis’ last position was as a co-chair with Connie Hubbs, who was re-elected to another term.

Hubbs and most of newly-installed executive members comprise the so-called ‘Left Unity’ slate that elected by the COPE membership on November 12 this year.

In a separate interview, Hubbs related that the new board was given a mandate to seek alliances with other progressive individuals and organizations for the 2018 municipal election.

According to Hubbs, the idea to build ties with other progressive forces gained momentum following the October 14, 2017 by-election for council.

COPE members endorsed independent candidate Jean Swanson in the special election, even though three members, namely Terry Martin, Wilson Munoz, and Krishna Mulder, signified their intention to seek the nomination of the party.

Swanson came second to the by-election winner, Hector Bremner of the NPA.

Hubbs noted that if Swanson’s votes were added to those of Judy Graves with the OneCity party, the NPA wouldn’t have prevailed.

“There was a great deal of talk about the need for unity, and how this was exactly what people feared,” Hubbs told the Straight by phone. “That if the progressive vote was split between people who like to support the Greens, people who might be persuaded to support OneCity, and supporters of COPE, that the city of Vancouver will suffer by losing a progressive voice.”

Hubbs and other members of the Left Unity bloc were endorsers of Swanson. These include newly-elected co-chair Rider Cooey; Carol Jerde, treasurer; Aiden Sisler, corresponding secretary; and John Ames, recording secretary.

“It became very natural for people who are COPE members and who had been enthusiastic supporters of Jean Swanson to say … this [collaboration with other progressive forces] is where we want to go, and we need to have people on the executive who are supportive of those goals,” Hubbs said.

Cooey has been a COPE member for around 20 years. He recalls running before for a position in the executive, but was not successful.

In a phone interview with the Straight, Cooey explained why he again sought a leadership role: “I was just anxious that COPE not completely disappear, because it seems to be that it’s the legitimate Left alternative in city politics.”