Category Archives: Homeless

Consider, Federal, Homeless, Municipal, Provincial

The Wisdom of Youth.

Leave a comment

One of the most telling comments on homelessness that came out of Philip Mangano’s visit to Abbotsford was from someone not even in attendance.

In speaking to a planner I know after hearing Mr. Mangano’s experiences in successfully beginning to end homelessness, she related the wisdom passed on to her by her eight year old daughter. Previous to Mr. Mangano’s visit she, the planner that is, had been involved in the FVRD mayor’s forum on homelessness held about a year ago in Chilliwack. In explaining the trip to Abbotsford her daughter was informed we would be talking about homelessness.

Her daughter was amazed. Almost a year latter and we were still talking about homelessness – having taken no action to end the disgrace of homelessness. Year after year we keep talking and wringing our hands; year after year homelessness keeps growing.

Perhaps it is time we take the young lady’s advice: shut up, commit our will and ourselves to ending homelessness and putting our resources where our rhetoric is.

Homeless, Municipal

Like a dog chasing its tail ….

Leave a comment

Crime-ridden Clearbrook issued a call for an interesting variation of the NIMBY syndrome, calling on the City of Abbotsford to solve their crime problems by driving this mayhem into other neighbourhoods. With neighbours like that …

Although one can see why residents advocate this course of action, since many of Clearbrook’s current crime problems arise as a result of actions by the Downtown Business Association (DBA), it remains a very un-neighbourly way to behave and ultimately self-defeating.

While the previous paragraphs have a certain tongue-in-cheek component, at their core is a solid truth. The police are not a solution, clearly demonstrated by Clearbrook’s current difficulties. Months ago, when the DBA was using the police to drive many of the homeless out of the downtown area and away from their survival support systems, I pointed out all they were really doing was being bad neighbours, inflicting their problems on their neighbours throughout the city.

It is currently Clearbrook’s misfortune and massive headache that they are the victims of the major portion of the fallout of the Downtown Abbotsford Businesses behaviour. That the calamity currently befalling Clearbrook is thanks to the DBA, is no excuse to solve Clearbrook’s problems by inflicting them on another neighbourhood. All the police would do is chase the problem out of Clearbrook into someone else’s backyard – nice for Clearbrook, hard on the sacrificial neighbourhood.

The uncomfortable, perhaps even painful truth is that the only way to solve these problems, as opposed to just inflicting them on someone else, is to stop repeating what we have done over and over ad nauseum to no avail, and begin to act with thought, planning, deliberation and commitment to actually end the problems with housing and support services that have led to Clearbrook’s miseries.

It is not by accident that Clearbrook, with no social support such as the Food Bank or Salvation Army, is being laid waste by crime. Lacking any support the homeless and those living in poverty must in effect pillage the Clearbrook neighbourhood for their daily survival. We can either keep the homeless et al moving from neighbourhood to neighbourhood like a ravaging Mongol horde until they arrive back at their starting point in downtown old Abbotsford OR we can take intelligent actions.

Insanely keep doing the same thing over and over hoping for a different outcome this time OR think and act to end homelessness. Choose, although it does seem a pretty clear choice to this citizen.

Homeless

I’m what?

Leave a comment

One does not tend to think of oneself as testimony, but Mr. Philip Mangano during his talk at Centennial Auditorium reminded me that I am testimony to the fact that homelessness can be ended.

The important keys to my beginning the journey out of homelessness were support and opportunity. I say beginning because I am currently still living in the Supported Independent Living Units at the Salvation Army in Abbotsford. And the most important needs to move on into a stable state of being “homed”? Support and opportunity continue to be the keys.

When I think about the path that led me into and through homelessness to my current place in transitional housing, I am struck by just how fortunate I have been when it comes to finding the support I needed. This good fortune is underscored because I see so many others who, failing to get the support they need, continue to live the life of misery that is homelessness.

I may never win prize draws, lotteries etc. but there is no denying the great luck or fortune I have had in obtaining the support I needed when I truly needed it.

I have also been most fortunate in having information about opportunities, not just cross my path, but come to my attention at a time I was ready or able to take advantage of the opportunity. Being aware of an outpatient depression group at MSA psychiatric does one no good unless you are ready to pursue that course of recovery.

Sometimes opportunities need to be supported by other opportunities. At the same time the opportunity to move out of my car and into the SIL units arrived, I also was presented with the opportunity to be in outpatient treatment at MSA. After more than a year and a half living in my car the move back inside was stressful and full of mental health issues. Being an outpatient was instrumental in successfully dealing with the stress and issues of the move “inside”.

If we want to end homelessness we need to be willing to invest in opportunity and support.

Opportunities in the form of available, affordable housing; programs for recovery from addiction and mental illness; to find gainful employment; to build social connections; to regain self-esteem and self-belief; to become productive, respected members of the community.

Support in a variety of levels and forms. Support to get through the rough times; to offer encouragement to press on in dealing with problems and challenges; someone and somewhere to turn to for help at anytime it is needed and for anything that is needed; to make them part of the community; to learn and make better/wiser choices; to make the truly tough choices; to just be there and listen.

Support in varying levels matching the level needed by each individual and in a timeframe appropriate to each individual. The homeless are not one thing but encompass a broad spectrum of people. Some of the homeless will need only a little support for a short period of time, some will need a great deal of support for rest of their lives, the bulk of the homeless will fall somewhere between these extremes.

Provide opportunity and support and we can end homelessness – if we choose. Mr, Mangano’s leadership has resulted in proof, in the form of significant reductions in homelessness in cities across the U.S., that we can end homelessness. We need leadership, willpower, stealing the best, most successful practices already tested in the field and the application of solid business management practices.

All we need to do is be willing to stop doing, over and over and over, what we know does not work and be willing to pursue actions we know will effect positive change.

I am testimony to the fact we can end homelessness.

Homeless, Provincial

Warehousing is NOT a solution.

Leave a comment

Warehousing is not a solution, it is only a band-aid. I worry that the public will be misled into thinking this $80 million purchase of hotels by the Liberal government is a solution rather than just the first step of a multi-year long process.

It is also most worrisome that the Liberal government appears to fail to see any homelessness beyond the boundary of Greater Vancouver. The hundreds of homeless roaming the streets of Abbotsford also are in dire need of shelter Mr. Campbell, what of them?

Having said that it was still good to see the provincial government begin to acknowledge the extent of the homeless challenge we as a society and province face. This move does serve to secure these buildings for very low income housing. Ideally we would be building from the ground up to incorporate the lessons experience has taught us about designing this type of transitional housing.

Unfortunately procrastination on homelessness by all levels of government have denied us the luxury of time. While not ideal this purchase and rehab gets these units online quickly. We need to follow this beginning up by starting NOW to plan and build the additional transitional housing units required by the number of homeless on our streets, numbers that are a result of our failure to take action. These new units we can design and build based on the lessons our hard earned experience has taught us.

Simply warehousing the homeless is not a solution. At the rate our society for a variety of reasons is generating new homeless, simply warehousing the homeless continuously lead to overflowing “warehouses” and the need to be continuously adding warehouse space.

From years of experience we know the form and nature of the programs we need to put in place if we want to make progress and reduce the homeless population. I have no illusions that homelessness can be reduced to zero. I know, we know, based on experience, that we can significantly reduce the homeless population. IF we choose to make the investment in housing, detoxification, recovery and community based support programs experience we need to put in place.

The true challenge in reducing homelessness lies in the fact that the needed course of action requires leadership, boldness, a willingness to face an unpleasant reality, change our current approach and the willingness to accept and deal with the unavoidable problems in helping people with many behavioural difficulties. All of which, regrettably, politicians would rather avoid in the service of opinion polls and the name of winning politics.

It is easy to spend $80 million on buildings, especially when it permits announcing this purchase with pomp, circumstance and self congratulations.
Investing $80+ million in the housing and recovery/support programs we know we need to put in place is hard. Politics may be a blood sport but it is easy to play. It is far harder to address the complex, unpleasant and unpopular problem of homelessness calling as it does for character and the willingness to stand up and be counted not because it is politically popular but because it is the right thing, the Canadian way to behave.

Politics or Leadership, the homeless ball is currently in the court Mr. Campbell and his Liberals .

Homeless, Municipal

Abbotsford: City without Compassion.

Leave a comment

With the growing numbers of homeless on the streets of Abbotsford the competition for a place to find shelter or camp is, like housing market of the lower mainland, highly competitive. So it was only a matter of time of time until some were forced to return to the wooded site dubbed Compassion Park. Since late last year a number of people had been quietly coming and going from these woods in order not to disturb the neighbours or attract the attention of Abbotsford City Hall to their homes, however so humble.

It took several months but once aware of the location these citizens resided at Abbotsford City Hall moved quickly to post No Trespassing signs followed speedily by confiscation of the camper’s meagre possessions. Making the poor a little more destitute, the homeless more homeless and robbing these people, these citizens, of what little protection they had from the terrible downpours of March.

Tents, tarps, bedding and food all gone – without offering any alternative shelter to those so ruthlessly exposed to the pouring rain and cold. One could only wish they would move as speedily on addressing the issues and needs raised by homelessness in Abbotsford.

The speed with which Abbotsford City Hall moved on this matter is hardly surprising since they undoubtedly dreaded the thought of the public and media attention possible following a “rebirth” of Compassion Park. It would highlight their lack of action, of ideas or leadership. Why, the citizens might demand the council cease focusing on building white elephants and focus, even do something, on the “mundane” problems facing the city such as homelessness, water treatment, dikes, run-away property taxes, attracting businesses to diversify the tax base etc.

Leadership, innovation, good business practices, solid management and problem solving you say? Nay, not in Abbotsford! Better we be know as a city without compassion or simple Christian charity than Abbotsford City Hall should actually have to have to think and take action on the City’s pressing issues.

Citizens are left wishing that the next municipal election were only months away so they could vote and thus limit the damage the current occupants of Abbotsford City Hall are inflicting on the City finances and the backlog of pressing problems they are causing by ignoring issues and/or failing to act.

Unfortunately for the lives of the homeless, taxpayers and citizens, Abbotsford City Hall still has lots of time to mire the City in debt, unresolved problems and to continue to inflict misery on the homeless.