The following is an opinion article signed by the mayors of 12 major cities in BC, including Kelowna Mayor Colin Basran and Kamloops Mayor Ken Christian. People working in our cities do not have the financial means to live in them. Young people can not buy houses. Families live in very small spaces for their needs because they can afford it. Students live in trucks. Too many people experience homelessness. All this is not new, years have passed in the works. And now it’s a crisis. Our province is home to four of Canada’s fastest growing communities, with more than 100,000 people migrating in BC. in 2021. That year, only 47,607 new homes were started. Monitoring this growth rate is a burden on the municipalities. For example, within a few months, Victoria and Vancouver rents increased by 20% from late 2021 to early 2022. The recent federal budget and the indications from the Eby County Housing Office, together – and in collaboration with cities – may begin to address the real crisis ahead. The Federal Budget 2022 is committed to doubling the number of new homes to be built in the next 10 years. The unifying cry of the Federal Government, that “this must become a great national effort and will require a new spirit of cooperation”, can only be achieved with the cities as partners. With the right tools, resources and power, our municipalities will achieve these ambitious goals. As mayors, we see too many of our residents still experiencing homelessness. And we hear about the impact of people living in public spaces on our small businesses. Local, provincial, and federal cooperation developed during the pandemic, where the federal Rapid Housing Initiative (RHI) saw that the rapidly built support housing in almost all of our communities is the foundation on which to build. The 2022 budget shows good intentions that must be followed with concrete actions to be successful. We are pleased to see an additional $ 1.5 billion RHI investment to continue tackling homelessness and will work hard to ensure that BC receives its share of the funding in this round. We are also grateful for the continued doubling of Reaching Home funding. This is a direct federal investment in our communities to address the homeless and provide programs and services that are so needed by those most vulnerable. We are concerned that there was no more funding for the homeless natives. $ 300 million over five years is insufficient to meet the needs of the indigenous peoples displaced on our streets due to the effects of colonization and the school housing system. More needs to be done to adequately house the disproportionately represented indigenous populations and this housing must be guided by indigenous peoples. The cornerstone of the 2022 Budget is the $ 4 billion Housing Acceleration Fund. This is where we can really take action. To be effective, the program must be easily accessible and as flexible as possible. Cities should be empowered to use the funding to meet the needs of individual communities, such as recruiting staff, updating licensing systems, streamlining procedures, acquiring land and other solutions that will get the job done faster and see more housing being built. . There is no shortage of housing applications, we just need the capacity and resources to expedite them. Housing Accelerator funding should be disbursed to local governments without the need for prior provincial funding or project approval. In cooperation with the provincial government, as municipal leaders we can use this funding ourselves. BC Minister for Housing David Eby has made headlines recently with the need to see local governments approve more housing faster. We are ready for the challenge. In 2019, the provincial government passed legislation requiring local governments to conduct Housing Needs Assessments every five years. The county will have to submit legislation requiring us to build the number of homes in our communities that we need. They need to provide the extra power, resources and tools needed and – along with investment from the Federal Housing Acceleration Fund – leave it up to us how to get there. This “great national effort” of a post-epidemic housing explosion will take on commitments from all of us. The federal budget signals that cities are key partners in tackling this challenge. BC Urban Mayors’ Caucus is ready for this, for our residents and businesses now and for future generations. – Colin Basran, Kelowna City. Malcolm Brodie, City of Richmond, Ken Christian, City of Kamloops, Jonathan Cote, City of New Westminster; Lyn Hall, City of Prince George. Fred Haynes, Saanich District; Lisa Helps, Victoria City. Mike Hurley, City of Burnaby; Leonard Krog, Nanaimo City; Doug McCallum, City of Surrey; Richard Stewart, City of Coquitlam, Stewart Kennedy, City of Vancouver.
