Vancouver council rubber-stamped 16 amendments to the Vancouver Charter to regulate signs and advertising during the 2010 Winter Olympics. (CBC)

Vancouver city council is seeking more power to regulate signs and advertising during the 2010 Winter Olympic Games.

Council rubber-stamped 16 amendments Thursday to the Vancouver Charter, the provincial legislation that governs city hall. The amendments still need to be approved by the province.

In a council meeting Thursday, the debate over the amendments focused on whether the city's power should be permanently expanded.

"I actually think we should direct the province, as we did in the previous charter request, to limit this to the duration of the Olympics," Coun. Ellen Woodsworth said.

Paul Henderson, the city's manager of Olympic operations, said the decision is ultimately up to the B.C. legislature.

But he said he expects while some amendments may be permanent, two of the more contentious ones will probably come with an expiry date.

Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson says the proposed amendments on the Vancouver Charter are not meant to stifle free expression during the 2010 Games but to control advertising. (CBC)

"Likely the provisions related to the ability to remove illegal signage and the ability to remove graffiti with limited notice… will be time limited," Henderson said.

Civil rights advocates said the city seems to be planning on cracking down on protest during the Games instead.

They said the city should not be armed with the right to arbitrarily remove graffiti or signs from properties according its own definition of what constitutes illegal signage.

Mayor Gregor Robertson said the goal is not to stifle free expression during the Games but to control advertising.

"The bylaws are more trying to ensure in particular that signage and advertising is within the purview of the city [and] is not out of control," he said.

Athletes Village funding

Council also approved on Thursday a report from the director of finance that recommending Vancouver pay for the rest of the Olympic Athletes Village's construction through a direct loan to the builder, a method of financing that would cut down on costs.

After the report was approved, Robertson said the city is "turning a corner now."

"We've been hard at this for the last month. We got the authority from the province and we have the tools we need," he said, referring to the B.C. government's amendment to the Vancouver Charter giving the city the authority to seek expanded means of financing the village.

"Negotiations are proceeding and I think we're going to be able to come through this in a much better position than in recent weeks," Robertson said.

The city needs to borrow up to $458 million to finish construction of the Olympic Village for the Winter Olympics.

With files from the Canadian Press