The U.S. flag at Queen’s Park Arena in New Westminster is finally coming down, weeks after a unanimous city council vote to remove it. This decision comes after public attention grew over why the flag remained in place despite clear council orders.
On Monday, a city memo confirmed that the flag will be replaced with a custom-made City of New Westminster flag on Tuesday. The new flag, which took time to design and ship, arrived on July 17. City staff with the Parks and Recreation Department are handling the change.
The delay has caused frustration. City Councillor Daniel Fontaine, who led the motion back in May during the “Elbows Up” campaign, said he recently saw the U.S. flag still flying at a New Westminster Salmonbellies game. Surprised by this, he asked city staff for answers.
Staff explained they were waiting for the replacement flag to arrive before taking down the American one. An internal memo stated that custom orders like this often take time to produce and deliver. However, Fontaine says the original flag was never taken down at all, leaving it unclear whether any steps were taken after the motion passed.
This lack of visible action has sparked concerns among some residents. Fontaine believes that delays like this one can harm public trust in local government.
“When people see that council decisions are not followed quickly, they lose confidence,” he said. “They may start to wonder if future motions will be acted on at all.”
Fontaine emphasized that he did not oppose flying the American flag during events where it would be appropriate, such as when U.S. teams are visiting. But he stood by the idea that, in normal situations, only the national and city flags should be displayed in the arena.
The decision to remove the flag follows a growing trend among other Canadian cities. Earlier this year, the City of Cranbrook took down the U.S. flag at its Western Financial Place Arena. That was followed by similar action in Mississauga, Ontario, where U.S. flags were removed from arenas and sites along Lake Ontario.
The “Elbows Up” campaign, which drew attention to issues of representation and respect in local spaces, helped push this motion forward. For supporters of the campaign, the removal of the American flag marks a symbolic win. But the delay in execution has led to questions about how efficiently council decisions are carried out.
Some residents say this situation highlights a larger problem — the gap between policy and practice. When official votes are not followed with action, even small decisions can create big doubts in the public mind.
The city has not confirmed why the old flag was left up for so long. While the arrival of the new flag explains part of the delay, critics say the original motion could have been honored earlier by simply taking the flag down temporarily.
Fontaine hopes that going forward, the city will be more prompt in following through on council votes. “People expect decisions to mean something,” he said. “We need to prove they do.”
As of Tuesday, the stars and stripes will no longer be part of Queen’s Park Arena. In its place, the New Westminster flag will now represent the venue — a small but significant shift in how the city presents itself in public spaces.
