Richmond councillor slams move to pause B.C. Housing project
6-storey supportive housing project was slated to provide 90 private studios near Aberdeen Centre
A Richmond, B.C., councillor says he's disappointed with the province's move to suspend a supportive housing proposal in the Metro Vancouver city.
Kash Heed said the decision to pause the six-storey housing project at Cambie Road and Sexsmith Road was politically motivated, with the move coming a month-and-a-half before the provincial election.
The project, which has faced pushback from nearby Richmond residents over public safety, would have provided up to 90 studios for those experiencing homelessness near Aberdeen Centre.
Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon announced Friday that the province will suspend work on the project and "hear from the community and reassess our options."
Heed said Kahlon's decision is a "flip-flop", because B.C. Housing, the provincial agency, previously supported the project as homelessness became more visible in Richmond.
He said the decision by the B.C. NDP government was political, with the suburb set to be an important battleground for provincial parties.
"Certainly it's not the NDP party that I am used to dealing with," Heed told CBC News. "It seems to be something that is just a knee-jerk reaction based on ensuring that they win the next election."
Heed said the province may have been swayed by "misinformation" about the site, with opponents saying the project would have fostered open drug use near children's parks.
"We took it upon ourselves to take some responsibility, working collectively with the other levels of government to deliver the services that these people need," he said.
"Now we've got that level of government, that has a key responsibility for dealing with this, shying away from it."
But some residents and local businesses have been actively opposing the supportive housing project, citing concerns about safety.
Sheldon Starrett, a Richmond resident, spearheaded an online petition, which has garnered more than 7,500 signatures. He said similar supportive temporary modular housing, like the one at Alderbridge, led to an increase in public substance use and has made the area less safe for the community.
"There's been a lot of problems with residential areas, businesses, people breaking in, trespassing, vandalizing, open drug use," he said.
Mayor pushes back against criticism
The project near Aberdeen Centre was meant to consolidate two temporary supportive housing sites in the city, with those sites slated to close if the project went through.
Kahlon's statement said those temporary site's leases have been extended until 2027, as the province works with the city to look at other options for the site.
Richmond Mayor Malcolm Brodie said the city wants to support unhoused residents any way they can, and that assumptions that the site would be a "drug den" were off the mark in many ways.
"There's all kinds of issues involving the people who are without a home," he said. "But if we don't assist them in some way, it doesn't mean they're going to go away. It means that they're going to be out on the street, or in some kind of unstable situation.
"Is it easier to deal with someone when they have a basic roof over their head? Or is it better to deal with them when they are in far more desperate circumstances and unsatisfactory situations?"
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With files from Janella Hamilton and Pinki Wong