Homelessness Committee Revived
Prince George, B.C.- It has a new name, but the goal remains the same, address the issue of homelessness in Prince George.
It used to be called the Standing Committee on Beyond Homelessness, and it started with a trip to Portland Oregon to see first- hand how that city dealt with the issue. The focus was on housing first, as the Portland experience was that once a person has stable housing, the other issues can be dealt with, but stable housing was the starting block.
While off to a quick start back in 2009, the Committee fell silent in late 2011, right after the municipal election in Prince George.
“We were convening in December (2011) and we said hold off until the Core Review has been done and then you’ll get some staff resources to work with” says Councilor Garth Frizzell, one of the committee members.
The Core Review, a key plank in the election platform of Shari Green, was completed in late 2012, and was followed by the Core Review Implementation Plan delivered by City Manager Beth James in July of 2013. But the core Review wasn't the only challenge.
There was also the loss of the Social Planning Facilitator when Chris Bone left the City. Committee Chair Murry Krause says it has taken time to find staff support, "We need support of administrative staff to do the support work of the committee".
Yet, it wasn’t until June of 2014 that the Committee on Beyond Homelessness would huddle again, this time to talk about revising its terms of reference and changing its name.
It looks as though it’s being revived just in time for the fall election “That’s the sad part” says Frizzell “We’ve been working with the Community Development Institute and there’s a fantastic housing report that we’ve been working on at the committee that has just been completed. But the timing does make it look like its grand standing for an election, but it isn’t, we only got started a few months ago.”
Chair Murry Krause admits this term has been a challenge, "Trying to get some things back on the agenda that have been important to the community for a while, I think we now have that. I'm going to go forward in a positive way."
Krause says there is something the City needs to be very aware of, "If we're going to benefit from all the economic development that appears to be on the horizon, then we really have to get out in front of ensuring we have affordable housing for all because what's happening in some communities in the north, is that lower income people are losing their housing because landlords can rent to people who can afford to pay more. So we certainly don't want to see people displaced and so what I'm saying is, we have the opportunity to get out in front of it. If we don't get out in front of it, we only have ourselves to blame."
The Committee’s new name is “Select Committee on Homelessness and Affordable Housing”.
Comments
So in five years, nothing much has happened, except for a trip to Portland. The homeless are still homeless.
While talk is cheap, people are still without homes, from which they could be starting to change their lives for the better.
I am hard pressed to think of any affordable housing projects in PG over the last 20-years. Maybe the womens recovery housing at Rainbow and Ospika is the only one that comes to mind.
For whole families there is not much available in PG other than renting expensive houses. More than half the apartment buildings in PG have regulations against allowing children, and the market stock for modern townhouses is less than half any other city this size.
To grow PG will have to become family friendly, because more and more families are leaving PG for places with better options. School District 57 now has nearly half the student population it had only 20-years ago, and the average age in the city has nearly doubled… indicating a large future population slippage due to a lack of population renewal.
It use to be we could get away with only half of the students graduating high school staying in PG making it home and we could maintain the city population, but now with the low student numbers we need nearly every student graduating today to stay and make PG home, maybe go to university here, just to avoid population decline.
Its a battle PG is loosing because all the focus is on enabling a small group to run the city like a business and not a community. Things like standard of living, good housing stock, and value for tax dollars seem to escape the minds of most PG planners.
There are a number of facilities that have been built for the homeless. The facility on 17th and Queensway comes to mind. Also the old Astoria Hotel on 2nd Avenue. Then we have some other facilities on 2nd and George St., There is also facilities on 6th Avenue in the old Liquor Store.
None of the facilities were brought about by the committee mentioned above as far as I know.
There is no doubt that having facilities for the homeless is the first, and very important step in getting them off the street, and giving them a chance. The facility at 17th and Queensway is a prime example of how successful these types of projects can be.
We need less caterwauling by Councilors like Mr Krause, and more action.
Murray makes reference to all the economic development that appears on the horizon, perhaps he would like to share some of this information with the rest of us.
My indications are that the economic developments in other areas are driving up the cost of housing etc; and those that are being displaced are coming to Prince George, and this influx adds to our homeless problem.
The real problem is that the more facilities we provide in Prince George the more homeless we will attract, thus never really solving the problem, but continuously increasing our cost.
We should be working with the BC Government, and perhaps the Feds. to provide facilities for homeless in all Cities, Towns, and Villages, so that people will be less inclined to gravitate to the Major cities.
This will probably never happen.
Don’t forget City Hall efforts to make everyone with an illegal basement suite into Business Owners! Talk about compound the housing problem in our community.
Where are all of those people supposed to move to? They are already enjoying low cost housing and quite content with it.
But our City Leaders seem to think they have a better idea. Good luck with that one. I expect voters won’t forget this money grab attempt at the next election.
Steward: “Don’t forget City Hall efforts to make everyone with an illegal basement suite into Business Owners!”
Shouldn’t illegal suites be shut down entirely? Being that they’re illegal and all… just sayin’
To many Rules, Bylaws, every time your turn there is another one.
JB – No they shouldn’t be shutting down illegal suites until they have an alternative place to go to that they can afford.
Many of these so called Illegal suites are the same basement suites our own children grew up in until they moved out of the house. They weren’t illegal then, what’s the difference now?
Steward: “Many of these so called Illegal suites are the same basement suites our own children grew up in until they moved out of the house. They weren’t illegal then, what’s the difference now?”
Probably building codes, like not having enough egress points in case of fire, etc., ‘home wired’ kitchens and that sort of thing.
If someone’s family died in one of these suites, who would be responsible then?
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