The GVRD was incorporated as the Regional District of Fraser-Burrard by letters patent on June 29, 1967. A copy of the letters patent is published in the BC Gazette, Part I, July 13, 1967 at p.1681-1682. The name was changed to the Greater Vancouver Regional District on June 13, 1968 (see BC Gazette Part I, June 27, 1968, p.1756-1757). In July 2007, the GVRD began operating under the trade name Metro Vancouver. This new name has been adopted for trademark and branding purposes. As of January 30, 2017, Letters Patent approving the amendment to change the name to Metro Vancouver Regional District was published in the BC Gazette, Part I, March 2, 2017. A full-text .pdf copy of Order in Council No. 023/2017 is also available on the BC Laws website.
There have been over 60 supplementary letters patent affecting various municipalities and describing approved functions of the GVRD, ranging from planning, labour relations, and mosquito control to recreational programs. The GVRD keeps an informal list of their letters patent. Please contact the Vancouver Courthouse Library for a copy of the list.
Selected bylaws are available on the Metro Vancouver website. For copies of individual bylaws that are not available on the website, contact the Metro Vancouver Library.
Content reviewed May 21, 2024
- The British Columbia gazette, part 1 – on-site at Courthouse Libraries
- BC Laws - Orders in Council - BC Government
- Bylaws – Metro Vancouver
- Metro Vancouver Library - Metro Vancouver Regional District