It's been six months since the last provincial election, and Burnaby's newest MLA has finally found a location for her office.
Jane Shin's Burnaby-Lougheed constituency headquarters are at unit 3, 8699 10th Ave. in Crest Plaza, in the south-east corner of her riding.
"It's not far from North Road, where we have that thriving Asian community there," Shin said.
Shin spent months looking for the right place, which had to be wheelchair accessible, easy to get to, with ample parking and a second exit for security purposes.
"It was difficult," Shin said. "There are still some of us (new MLAs) settling in, but most of us are done now."
For the past several months, Shin has been working out of Kathy Corrigan's Burnaby-Deer Lake constituency office on Kingsway, close to Metrotown.
"We've been doing case work and having our meetings out of Kathy's office. It was great, because we had mentorship and support," Shin said. "The only challenge I think was really for our constituents trying to find us really. But as far as our working conditions were concerned, we were really well taken care of at Kathy's office. Our resources were there, so it was fine."
The new office has no phone number yet, but Shin's contact information can be found at Janeshinmla.com. The grand opening for her office will be on Thursday, Nov. 28.
In the meantime, Shin has been learning the ropes as a new MLA.
"I'm so tired. It's been so busy. There are a lot of hats one has to wear as an MLA. I'm struggling to find my work-life balance," she said. "I'm getting to know the language of legislature, getting to know the rules of the house, learning the files."
Shin is deputy critic for multiculturalism and small business, tourism, arts and culture.
