Some important questions around BC subsidized housing have risen recently in light of the social housing projects proposed in Nanaimo. A particular concern to a group of  citizens is the effects on their neighbourhood as supportive/transitional housing is planned at Uplands Drive and Hammond Bay road (the lot behind Fire Hall #3).

To understand what is going on, it is good to know what has happened to the role of BC Housing.

Prior to 2001, the provincial government owned and operated affordable housing units for a variety of people including seniors and people with disabilities. As the years progressed, the government decided that it wanted to sell off or “leverage” the lands to private developers who in turn would build new units in a P3 (public private partnership) agreement.

Then the government decided that instead of running the new buildings themselves, they would be managed by non-profit societies, registered as charity organizations.  This entailed the formation of another group:

“BC Non-Profit Housing Association (BCNPHA) ~ The BC Non-Profit Housing Association is an umbrella organization of non-profit housing societies that manage affordable housing developments across the province. The BCNPHA takes a leadership role in representing the non-profit housing sector’s interests to government and the public.”

BC Housing exists on paper and they even have a website but it has been effectively gutted, an empty shell of a government department.

Pacifica Housing, which is slated to operate the Uplands building, is registered as a charity. According to their financial information filed in 2011, they received $ 4,210,368 in funding from the province and had $ 5,897,197 tied in property “not used for charitable purposes or administration.” ¹ They also have a “donate” button on their website www.pacificahousing.ca.

What has been the effect of this housing policy?

You only have to look at the former Little Mountain Housing Project in Vancouver to understand the ramifications of these changes.

Little Mountain Housing Project was established in 1954 as the first public housing project in British Columbia. For more than 50 years, Little Mountain, consisting of almost 200 households,  provided subsidized rental housing for low and moderate income families and seniors. In 2007, the buildings and land was sold to Holburn Group  under the new province-wide housing policy. ²

There are nine towers planned at ten to fourteen stories, while the rest of the density is spread out between four to nine stories. Holburn only paid the province for land zoned at four stories. This increase in land value is called “land lift.”  Unless the City attempts to recoup this value, the money will go directly into Holborn’s pocket as extra-profits, over and above the ‘regular’ profit rate of 15%.

Holburn has not yet built the 200 social housing units to replace the ones demolished in 2007. They now estimate that it might be constructed by 2017.³

Under this scenario, it is easier to understand why this as yet undisclosed developer wants to construct a 35 unit building in the north end of Nanaimo. What price did the developer pay for this land?

Notes:
¹ Financial information from www.cra.gc.ca Charity Listing

²  Thomson, Thomas Michael. The death and life of the Little Mountain Housing Project : BC’s first public housing community. Master’s thesis, 2010, UBC.

³ Witt, Andrew. (2012, January 16). Little Mountain: Why the Struggle for Social Housing is More Pressing Now than Ever.  Retrieved from www.spacingvancouver.ca

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Mid Island News

Seedy Sunday is coming to Nanaimo on Sunday, March 4, 2012 at the Bowen Park Auditorium from 10:00 am – 3:00 pm.

Come and celebrate organic seeds and urban gardening.

There will be a seed exchange where you can trade or purchase organic and non-hybrid seeds, educational workshops and displays that foster home gardening, local agriculture and sustainable practices which do not rely on the use of toxic chemicals.

Get ready to start eating your own home grown fresh veggies!

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Mid Island News

You can get involved in the next phase of the Moorecroft Regional Park Management Plan at an open house on Saturday, February 11, 2012. The open house event is scheduled for 12 noon to 4pm at Kennedy Lodge in Moorecroft Park, located at the end of Stewart Road in Nanoose Bay.

Participants will have the opportunity to comment on three different strategies for managing the park.

RDN staff is working with O2 Planning and Design, the Nature Trust of BC, and the Nature Conservancy of Canada to facilitate and oversee the plan, which is scheduled to be complete in November 2012.

For more information about this open house and other opportunities for public engagement, email moorecroft(at)rdn.bc.ca or contact Kelsey Cramer, RDN Regional Parks Planner.

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Mid Island News

All eligible voters can vote in the advanced polls, so you have lots of opportunity to get out and vote in the 2011 Local Government Elections. Below are the
advance voting locations and times for the Mid Vancouver Island area:

Regional District of Nanaimo:
(between the hours of 8:00 am and 8:00 pm on Wednesday, November 9,  2011)

Gabriola Island Elementary School Library, North Road, Gabriola Island
Administration Office, Regional District of Nanaimo, Hammond Bay Road, Nanaimo
Oceanside Place, West Island Hwy Parksville
Qualicum Beach Civic Centre, Jones Street, Qualicum

(On Wednesday, November 16, 2011 from 8:00 am and 8:00 pm)
Administration Office, Regional District of Nanaimo on Hammond Bay Road, Nanaimo
Oceanside Place, West Island Hwy, Parksville

City of Nanaimo:
(Wednesday, November 9 and 16, 2011 from 8:00 am to 8:00 pm)
Bowen Park Complex Auditorium located at 500 Bowen Road, Nanaimo

Ladysmith:
(Wednesday, November 9 and 16, 2011 from 8:00 am to 8:00 pm)
Council Chambers at City Hall, 410 Esplanade, Ladysmith

Lantzville:
(Wednesday, November 9, and 16, 2011, from 8:00 am to 8:00 pm)
District Office, 7192 Lantzville Road – 2nd Floor, Lantzville

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Mid Island News

Do you live or work in Cedar? You will be interested in attending a free community workshop (lunch included) for the Cedar Main Street Design Project  held by the Regional District of Nanaimo. This is your opportunity to make a difference in how Cedar will look for the future.

The purpose of the workshop is to officially launch the Cedar Main Street Design Project and will include a bus/walking tour of the Plan Area. Some of the workshop goals include:

• getting the community thinking about the Cedar Main Street concept;
•  beginning to develop a vision for what Cedar Main Street should become in the future; and,
• establishing community design preferences for the Cedar Main Street Plan Area (the lands along both sides of Cedar Road between MacMillan and Hemer Roads).

The workshop will be held Saturday, October 22, 2011 from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm at Cedar Community Secondary School at 1640 MacMillan Road.

If you are interested in attending the workshop, please register by email or by phone before October 14th, 2011. Space is limited so early registration is recommended.

Mid Island News

"B train" coal truck

Large trucks like these with thousands of tonnes of coal could soon be travelling along the Island Highway if the Raven Coal project in the Comox Valley goes ahead as planned, without using trains. Can you imagine a truck like the one above going along the windy road to Port Alberni or to Duke Point?

It is estimated that one of these large trucks would come down the highway every 20 minutes resulting in heavy wear on our highways, costing taxpayers millions in repairs.

Concerned citizens have launched a petition at www.norailnocoal.ca to ask that the various levels of government make the required upgrades to the railway so that coal can be transported safely.

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Mid Island News

Saitama City after the earthquake

Nanaimo’s Sister City, Saitama City, in Japan was affected by Friday’s earthquake.

Many residents in the community are faced with a shortage of food and supplies and rolling blackouts because of the damaged nuclear reactors.

Check out this video on what happened in a neighbourhood in Saitama during the earthquake or visit Masaru Kamikura’s youtube channel  for videos on life in Saitama City.

Mid Island News

Michal Benker by Artist Marie

Michal Benker is a local business operator

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Mid Island News