The city’s 35-page housing plan is rich with tantalizing one-liners about new things that are going to be tried to create affordable housing for working people squeezed out of the market and homeless people just squeezed.
I’m working my way through, line by line, and came across one on page 31 that said five neighbourhoods would be identified for more homeless services in the first phase of the plan. My story here explains that that one line meant.
3 responses so far ↓
1 Bill Lee // Aug 9, 2011 at 2:45 pm
Does she mean http://vancouver.ca/commsvcs/housing/pdf/THWU_Unconference_Book_FINAL.pdf ( 58 pages of infoblurb and graphics)
or the old crockery posted on the site http://vancouver.ca/commsvcs/housing/Homelessness.htm
And look!, the left-sidebar of Urban Wonks calendar is filling up. Still no postings for Deroche or Cultus Lake or the dozens of GVRD parks Madame Bula promised to visit and perambulate this year.
2 Bill Lee // Aug 9, 2011 at 2:54 pm
Not the 18 page Housing and Homelessness Strategy on the Housing Policy page at: vancouver.ca/commsvcs/housing/index.htm
” The Housing Centre is now Housing Policy, and is responsible for the City of Vancouver’s housing policy, programs and research.”
3 Claudia // Aug 9, 2011 at 2:59 pm
I’m having trouble finding the 35-page report to which you refer that details the neighbourhoods in question. I’ve read through two City Housing & Homlessness Strategy reports, as presented to Council at the end of last month, but can’t find the reference you’ve mentioned. Could you kindly post the specific report link? Many thanks.
I feel that a portion of your G&M article is misleading in including statements and figures that are not backed up by facts, figures or references. I am referring to the ‘in the past Marpole has had a high homelessness problem.’ This is news to us here in Marpole, where we do indeed have homelessness, just like everywhere in the city, but high? What does that mean? What is the definition of high, and compared to what? And when in the past?
The City’s own count in 2010 counted five homeless individuals in Marpole. Compared to Kerrisdale’s three homeless individuals, that’s a higher number, but what are the real benchmarks?
The Marpole BIA, along with other BIAs in Vancouver, has been involved in the City’s Housing workshops/symposiums over the past year. It has been very illuminating to explore the commonalities that stakeholder groups across the housing continuium share in looking for solutions to the housing and homelessness issues in our city. This has been a new engagement on our part; a response based on the more recent rise in concern about this issue in Marpole, compared to other neighourhoods in the city.
We need to focus on facts. Not everything we read (in City reports or otherwise) can be accepted at face value without examining where it’s coming from, or who is stating it. And why.
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