Since late 2014, twenty-six families in Winnipeg’s inner city have been living in a new, supportive social and affordable housing complex called WestEnd Commons. The innovative development was retrofitted in the 100-year-old St. Matthew’s Anglican Church building. Church and community leaders worked for years to build the affordable family housing complex in Winnipeg’s low-income West End neighbourhood. In addition to reduced rents, WestEnd Commons has a vision to create community and increase social inclusion in this inner city neighbourhood. Read full report above.
Housing and homelessness
How can we fix Vancouver's broken housing market?
Invest in affordable housing.
Restrict absentee ownership.
Make property taxes fair.
Click for full-size image.
(Vancouver) A new study finds Metro Vancouver’s growing housing affordability crisis is widening the gap between the rich and poor, and requires a multi-pronged response that would restrict absentee ownership, increase affordable housing supply for both new owners and renters, and make property taxes fair.
Metro Vancouver's housing market is broken. While most of the attention has been on the soaring price of housing, there is also a crisis in the rental market, and the complete absence of any secure housing for the most needy. Together, these factors have fuelled a widening gap between rich and poor.
To address this crisis we must stop treating housing primarily as an investment rather than a place to live. Vancouver's housing should be owned by the people of Vancouver, not absentee owners or corporations.
The housing market in Metro Vancouver is broken, and we need more rational planning and management in the interests of local people. This paper proposes a bold affordable housing solutions agenda, including an ambitious program of public re-investment in social and co-op housing, putting the brakes on absentee ownership, and progressive property taxation options.
Inside this issue:
Time to do away with MSP, by Iglika Ivanova
Yes, let’s lower the voting age in Canada, by Seth Klein
Housing budget? Not so much, by Marc Lee
Getting serious about good jobs
Refugees are bringing new attention to the gaps in our social safety net, by Suzanne Smythe
BC government’s spin cycle on LNG, by Marc Lee
For Manitoban’s concerned about poverty, there will be much to consider when sorting through political party platforms and promises in search of a meaningful poverty reduction plan. Poverty alleviation is a long-term proposition. No provincial political party can end poverty in the short term and certainly not in isolation of a federal government commitment. So beware of those politicians who offer silver bullets and quick fixes.
The Housing First model is an increasingly popular approach to housing homeless Canadians. Many studies have examined the benefits of Housing First, arguing that it is more effective than traditional methods of addressing homelessness. Far less attention has been paid to the challenges involved in operating Housing First programs, particularly in the Canadian context. This paper attempts to fill this research gap.
Supportive Housing is an important model on the housing continuum and a positive choice for many people living with mental illness. Whether it is because a person faces greater challenges or because they do not wish to live alone, supportive housing, commonly referred to as “group homes”, holds the potential of being a place where residents may develop a greater sense of personal community, as well as providing the additional safety and support that comes with round the clock staff.
This past weekend marked Canada’s National Housing Day. In recent history, housing in Canada hasn’t been a hopeful topic. In 1993 federal funds for new social housing development were cut and responsibility for social housing was devolved to the provinces. Provinces have since borne the brunt of filling this funding gap and, because provinces have less fiscal capacity than the feds, homelessness has increased.