The motion passed by Vancouver City Council sets precedent for exclusionary measures against marginalized groups.
Vancouver’s City Council’s decision to pause city contributions to the construction of net new supportive housing harms current marginalized groups and future struggling folks in need of supportive housing. Union Gospel Mission (UGM) spoke at city hall on Feb. 26 in opposition to the mayor’s motion with the firm belief that our most vulnerable residents — our neighbours, our family, our friends — will be hurt by this myopic decision.
The motion laid out exceptions such as continuing to help with housing for seniors, women, and youth aging out of care. However, specifically targeting one marginalized group — people who use drugs and those with severe mental health challenges — ultimately harms all marginalized communities. Excluding one group today sets a dangerous precedent for who might be excluded tomorrow. As an 86-year-old organization, with roots in the Downtown Eastside, and a desire to see communities transformed, this deeply concerns us.
Various members of City Council repeatedly stated that Vancouver represents 77 per cent of the region’s supportive housing stock. This is true but lacks needed context. Vancouver has 50 per cent of the region’s homeless population, of which 78 per cent were housed in Vancouver before becoming homeless. Expanding to include Metro Vancouver shows that 85 per cent have either lived in their own communities for at least five years or longer.
These numbers tell us that we — as a city — should do more, not less. The status quo in the DTES isn’t working. Our most vulnerable citizens, who are also directly impacted by this pause, are some of the most at-risk for violent victimization. Yet this motion won’t make the community safer for anyone. The Vancouver Plan explicitly states that the existing housing system is not meeting the needs of Vancouver’s current or growing population. It will require all hands on deck from all levels of government to frontline organizations to work together.
Further, saying a regional approach is necessary but voting against creating a new pathway to work collaboratively with the Ministry of Housing on Wednesday morning is self-defeating. When parts of a system are deeply flawed, even broken, gathering information from experts is a smart choice. Deepening partnerships with those who make more housing happen is a smart choice.
Housing is a system. Removing one part weakens the entire structure, making it harder for people to move from the streets into stability. The commitment to prioritize replacing aging Single Room Occupancy (SRO) units and modular housing is needed, but pausing city support for new lower-barrier supportive housing cuts off a vital pathway for those most vulnerable to homelessness.
We understand long-term housing may not be possible — or even the best choice — for everyone right away. UGM’s Continuum of Care model begins with emergency shelters and stabilization spaces and moves into supportive transitional housing like our recovery programs and second stage housing across the region. The ultimate goal of our Continuum is to see a person through to a point of wellness and holistic independence — where they eventually move into long-term housing that best works for their unique needs. For some that may include supportive housing with wraparound care and for others it may eventually mean market level housing.
For our most entrenched neighbours experiencing chronic homelessness, coupled with severe mental illness or addiction, stabilization and transitional housing is an excellent first step. But it’s just the start. Long-term supportive housing is the goal. The only path out of homelessness is one that includes housing. Everyone deserves a safe, liveable, home — and because each person or family is unique, many types of housing must be a part of the broader plan to address the systemic issues at the root of Vancouverites’ daily struggles around an affordability and housing crisis.
We need to address the real issue: our current housing system is under-resourced and in deep need of collaboration between all levels of government and those who are experts in providing transformative housing options.
Eugene McCann, an urban geographer and professor at Simon Fraser University, summed up the issue fairly succinctly on Wednesday night.
“Cities are their people. The city needs to focus on saving our people by building net [new] supportive housing,” he said, adding that the city’s decision to play “hardball” with others when negotiating about housing will have negative consequences.
Freezing net new supportive housing is the wrong path forward. Vancouver desperately needs its social housing stock, which only makes up a tenth of housing in the city, to be updated. We are ready to help find evidence-based solutions to systemic issues that will help people across Metro Vancouver. We urge our partners in all levels of government to work with us to address the cracks in the system — and put people first.
