New Westminster is alerting provincial and federal housing authorities about a shortage of rental properties for refugees.
The city’s multiculturalism advisory committee has raised concerns about the housing needs related to newly arriving Syrian and Iraqi refugees in New Westminster. The committee recommended that the city communicate with provincial and federal authorities and ask them to pay particular attention to affordability and housing size.
“It was noted that the vacancy rate is at a historic low and there is a very limited supply of two- and three-bedroom units,” said a report to council. “It was further noted that the lack of housing could create added stresses and would delay the settlement and integration process.”
John Stark, the city’s senior social planner, attended a March 17 meeting of the Metro Vancouver Refugee Response Team, where securing adequate and affordable housing was identified as critical barrier with regard to settlement and integration. Along with employment, Stark said housing is the hardest barrier to address.
In 2012, the city surveyed 224 new immigrants and refugees and found that 52.5 per cent cited finding suitable housing as a significant challenge.
“Since this time, the rental housing market, which is the preferred tenure type for new immigrants and refugees, has become tighter,” he said. “Compounding matters, new immigrant and refugee families tend to be larger, thus they often require housing with two or three bedrooms.”
In October 2015, the apartment vacancy rate in New Westminster was 0.9 per cent, Stark said, with the rate being even lower for two-bedroom units (0.8 per cent) and three-bedroom units (0.0 per cent). He noted that as of this month there are 458 applicants on the waiting list for subsidized housing at B.C. Housing, of which 142 are families.
Did you know?
* In 2015, a total of 171 government assisted refugees from Iraq and Syria settled in New Westminster. Of these people, 163 were from Iraq and eight were from Syria.
* It’s been difficult to determine the number of privately sponsored refugees from Syria who have arrived in New Westminster in 2016, but more details are expected by the end of April. To help private sponsors and refugees address some of the barriers and connect them to resources and supports, the city is hosting a Newcomers Connect Day on April 23.
* The City of New Westminster will contribute $500 to a Newcomers Connect Day. Fraser Health and the United Way are also providing financial support to the event.
* The city is updating the Your New West Newcomers Guide, and is developing a Residents’ Guide to Municipal Services that will be printed in the five most commonly spoken non-English languages in New West.
* The city will work with the Immigrant Services Society of B.C. on planning and staging a celebration in support of World Refugee Day on June 20.
* Immigration is a “significant driver” of population growth in New Westminster, with 33.4 per cent of the population comprised of immigrants in 2011.
