A $60-million Capital Regional District housing strategy is calling for more than 440 units of subsidized housing and 440 of market rental units to be created in partnership with the province over the next five years.
The proposal, going to members of the CRD’s finance committee Wednesday, suggests at least 268 of the new units be available at the provincial shelter allowance rate ($375 a month) for people experiencing chronic homelessness along with a further 175 affordable units, says a CRD staff report.
“It will build much-needed housing for people who are chronically homeless and that’s really the focus,” said Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps, who co-chairs the Greater Victoria Coalition to End Homelessness.
Guiding the Regional Housing First Program will be a community plan developed by the coalition.
“It’s meant to do two things: which is improve and enhance the housing ecosystem, which arguably has lots of bottlenecks and crazy turns in it to get housing, and to build new housing as well, which is much needed,” Helps said.
That plan’s objectives are:
• To house 175 individuals experiencing chronic homelessness using existing supportive housing through enhanced co-ordination.
• Create 133 units of new-build supported housing for the chronically homeless.
• Create 133 units of new-build affordable housing for individuals wanting to leave existing supportive housing and needing access to affordable housing.
The plan is for the CRD and B.C. Housing each to provide funding for an equal number of units with anticipated completions to take place over three years beginning in 2019.
Kelly Newhook, executive director of the Victoria group Together Against Poverty Society, said the housing units are all desperately needed right now. She said she hopes an effort will be made to offer a variety of housing — Victoria has glaring needs, such as housing for young people, young women, and seniors.
A support infrastructure is needed, with counselling, mental-health workers and addiction services, she said.
“But the housing — that’s really exciting, $60 million, we have never seen that kind of investment, ever,” said Newhook.
The new units would be in addition to the 229 units of supportive housing purchased by the province over the past year to help house people who were living at the now-closed tent city on the grounds of the Victoria courthouse.
The plan is for the new units to be developed within mixed-market projects, the CRD report says.
Helps said it’s exciting to see the plan get underway.
“It’s great that the province bought all the units for tent city but this is moving forward. It’s great to see everybody at the table. We look forward to the $60 million going out the door, but it’s a five-year plan, so we’re looking for another $30 million from the federal government at a certain point over the five-year period.”
Debt-servicing costs on the $30 million the CRD will borrow as its share of the funding are estimated at about $1.98 million a year.
The CRD approved a plan in December to borrow $30 million for affordable or supportive housing projects if the province contributed an equal amount. In May, Housing Minister Rich Coleman confirmed the province had agreed to match the CRD’s investment.
Helps said federal support is critical.
“Every mayor in Canada will tell you that homelessness is a big issue in their city and so we can do all the work we want to as provincial and regional governments, but until the federal government comes to the table in a meaningful way with a housing strategy and with dollars, no, we’re not going to end homelessness.”
