I’m writing this post to explain my vote on a recent homelessness and sheltering motion. Several people have asked me why I voted as I did. (I’ve explained several times in Council meetings, but not everyone watches.)
The short version is that playing whack-a-mole is not a solution to homelessness, and that’s what the new bylaw does.
On July 4, City Council adopted a bylaw that will make it illegal to shelter, at any time, in Irving Park or Vic West Park.
I voted against, but the vote carried 6-3.
This originated on April 18 with the following motion being passed at Committee:
“1. That Council direct staff to work with BC Housing, relevant service providers, and the City’s sheltering Relocation Coordinator, to offer indoor sheltering or housing to the people sheltering in Irving Park and Vic West Park as of April 18, 2024;
2. That, contingent upon the above taking place, Council direct staff to phase out and eventually prohibit overnight sheltering in Irving Park and Vic West Park by 1 August 2024, via an update to the Parks Regulation Bylaw.
3. That, to facilitate the relocation of those sheltering in parks, direct staff to identify at least three indoor or outdoor locations, excluding parks, where sheltering could be permitted, and report back to Council before June 15 with the sites.”
I support most of the above motion, but not the bylaw change:
- I fully support item 1 in the above motion – offering indoor sheltering or housing to people currently in parks. This is actually something that was covered in a broader motion that I moved and that passed several months ago. So item 1 was redundant, and not needed.
- I fully support item 3 – identifying designated sheltering sites. This is something I’ve been working on with some of my colleagues for this entire Council term.
- I would have supported item 2 if we had adequate sheltering and housing capacity, but we don’t and – as we all expected – more people arrived in those parks after April 18.
Like everyone else, council members know that homelessness isn’t static; there are multiple pipelines into homelessness:
- evictions;
- women fleeing domestic violence;
- youth aging out of foster care;
- patients being released from hospitals into homelessness;
- a low vacancy rate;
- layoffs; and,
- others.
This is why we expected more people would show up after April 18, and of course that’s what happened. It varies, but recently there have been roughly 10 to 20 people in Irving and Vic West Parks, in addition to those who were there on April 18. So that’s 10 to 20 people who will be displaced on or before August 1, and moving elsewhere in the City.
As the City’s website says “People sheltering in parks need access to washrooms and running water. The City has identified some parks in the Overnight Sheltering in Parks handout that have facilities and are most suitable for temporary overnight sheltering.” (Of course, sheltering without access to washrooms is theoretically possible, but it would have health and other consequences for the unhoused and their housed neighbours, and is definitely not advisable.)
Here is the map from the handout:
As you can see, there are five parks with washrooms. The two parks closest to downtown are Irving and Vic West Parks. As of August 1, those will be closed to sheltering, leaving three parks with washrooms.
These three remaining parks are further from services, and for some unhoused people who are seniors or have mobility challenges – i.e. the most vulnerable – the extra distance is a problem.
There are some additional shelter spaces and homes that will be available in coming months, and I’m very grateful to the provincial government, non-profit service providers, and City staff for that. However, there are far more people sheltering outdoors in Victoria right now than there are additional shelter or housing spaces set to open by August 1.
So the people currently sheltering in Irving and Vic West parks will be displaced, and will be sheltering in other locations in the City.
I’ve always said that sheltering in parks and on streets is not a solution to homelessness. I will support closing all outdoor parks to sheltering once we have adequate shelters and housing.
However, as everyone can see, that is not the case today, and the bylaw is premature.