Some Queensborough residents are concerned about a plan to build housing for homeless women in their neighbourhood.
The city held an open house last week to get feedback about a proposed modular housing project on city-owned land at 838 Ewen Ave. The city would retain ownership of land but would lease the site to B.C. Housing, which would build the 44-unit development and contribute operating funds for the project that would provide housing and services for women who have experienced homelessness or are at risk of homelessness.
“I understand that there is a need,” longtime Queensborough resident Frank Bordignon told council Monday night. “At the same time, I and many other residents down there are very concerned about the seriousness that this could cause right by a school, right by a community centre.”
As someone who has fought to have more amenities like schools and parks in Queensborough, Bordignon said it’s the wrong location for the project and suggested the site should remain as open park space.
The province will provide about $6.5 million to build new modular homes for women who are experiencing homelessness. The project would also provide tenants with 24-7 support services, including meal programs, life-skills training and health and wellness supports to help them overcome challenges to maintaining their housing.
Queensborough resident Bernadette Gourlay urged city council to consider the needs of more than 700 children living in housing around the site. She said it’s unknown whether the residents would be lovely citizens who would live peacefully next to a school, or have angry boyfriends or friends with mental health issues or drug problems.
“Putting modular housing next to the borders of the community centre and the middle school and the elementary school is just not an ideal spot for our children,” she said.
While some residents have voiced concerns about the project, others have expressed support for the development.
Coun. Chuck Puchmayr said there was a time the city didn’t embrace these types of projects and had people living in doorways and under the bridge. He said the city is now home to three shelters, numerous recovery homes and other facilities.
“These services are needed in the community. They are services that actually create a safer community, not a more dangerous community.”
Puchmayr urged community members who are against the project to look at what’s happened in communities where these sorts of services and resources aren’t offered.
“These are very positive programs. They are managed by B.C. Housing. They are managed by the provincial government. They are managed by some really good agencies in the city. Don’t be worried,” he said. “We will have a good discussion on this, but look at some of the examples and how we have made the city safer by putting people in housing, rather than keeping them on the streets.”
Mayor Jonathan Cote said the project is going through its consultation process and will be discussed by council in June. He said it’s not surprising that some community members are nervous about the proposal, particularly in neighbourhood where this is a new type of housing.
“There are some unknowns and can be some fears associated with that,” he recently told the Record. “I think we have a good experience in New Westminster with some really well-run facilities that integrate into the neighbourhood. We certainly want to apply the learnings that we have had in other cases to this particular project. Whether it is in New Westminster or other communities, we often hear the response that, ‘Yes, we do need this type of housing, but this is not the right location.’ Unfortunately if you apply that to every single situation you’d never be able to find a location to build housing, which I think we can all agree collectively agree needs to be built and is important in our communities.”
