Craig Holuboch and Bruce are why I was and am so disgusted by the behaviour of city council and the people of the neighbourhood about the lost supported, affordable housing project proposed for 2323 Emerson Street, Abbotsford.

The relapse rate for those in transition from treatment to the outside world is so high that treatment is referred to as “a relapse preparation program” by some.

It is a transition full of challenges that is made far more difficult by the lack of safe, healthy affordable housing. Particularly housing that comes with support for the rough patches; support geared to the individuals needs.

Having watched the toll (in the form of relapsing) the lack of affordable, safe, healthy supportive housing takes on those coming out of treatment, it would seem to be a no brainer to provide this needed housing. Apparently not to government, even though it has been demonstrated that providing this housing has a dramatic effect on the rate of success of those transitioning out of treatment.

It is expensive and costly to keep recycling people through the treatment/help/programs systems and industry, time after time after time. Not just in terms of the large expenditure of tax dollars spent, but also in terms of the human toll it takes on those being run through the system time after time.

The path to recovery and wellness is like building a car for a journey. Putting a powerful engine in won’t accomplish much without a transmission. Similarly treatment (the engine) doesn’t accomplish much without a successful way to transition (the transmission) out of treatment back into the world.

Making that transition is hard and stressful enough without the burden of less than supportive, healthy, safe and affordable housing.

Bruce is an interesting case and a person I have known going back to the time I was homeless.

People, who see him pushing his overflowing cart along the street, do not see the intelligent man that Bruce is. I always appreciate the opportunity to engage in discourse with him, an opportunity that occurs as we are both frequent visitors to the library.

If one takes the time to sit and talk to Bruce it is quickly apparent that he is aware of the fact his packrat ways are what prevent him from being housed. Having experienced it I empathize with being intellectually aware of what the problem is – but being powerless to do anything about it.

It is interesting that not many weeks ago that Bruce and I were sitting in the library lobby having a conversation as to what would be necessary for him to find – and stay in – housing. It was not really all that difficult to arrive at a conclusion. Since Bruce finds himself powerless over his packrat ways, what he needs is help to deal with this reality of his life.

What Bruce needs is housing that comes with support in the form of help to decide which of his finds he will keep and which will be removed from the premises. He needs someone to build a relationship and gently but firmly, on at least a weekly basis, invest the time to help Bruce sort and choose the ‘keepers’. Bruce did feel that shelving to organize and manage his finds would be quite helpful in managing his collection.

Safe affordable housing that provides the type of support an individual needs is part of the basic foundation needed to help Craig, Bruce and similar people thrive. Providing this type of housing is not only the ethical thing to do – it has the bonus of saving money.

Reading Mayor George Peary’s comments regarding homelessness left me wondering if councillors are issued a simple ‘crib sheet’ or whether they are required to memorize the ‘official city response’ to parrot back on questions about homelessness.

Setting aside why it is that the City of Abbotsford  has such a limited amount of city owned land, one is left wondering why councillors keep pleading poverty whenever the issue of homelessness is raised.

I have not heard people clamouring for the city to fund homeless initiatives. This is hardly surprising since people are well aware that it is the provincial and federal governments that must provide funding if we are to begin addressing the complex issues of homelessness, addiction, mental illness, poverty etc. Not based strictly on whose responsibility it is, but because of the reality that the senior levels of government are the ones who have sufficient financial resources to fund solutions.

The city’s lack of funds is not the poverty that is, and has been for years, the major impediment to addressing, rather than avoiding, the issues connected to homelessness solutions.

A poverty of leadership from council, not a lack of funds, is the poverty that most interferes with making progress on these issues. It is this lack of leadership that has failed to rally the wide array of resources available in Abbotsford and the province of BC, preventing effective progress to be made on these issues.

The difference between those communities building affordable housing and striving to address the issues that surround and interconnect with homelessness versus the communities pleading poverty or that it is not their responsibility or whatever the excuse de jour is for wringing their hands then sitting on them – is leadership.

There is a desperate need for affordable, supportive, minimal barrier housing in Abbotsford. The Ebenezer home, a 91 bed supportive care home, sits empty. In a city with civic leadership on these issues … anything is possible.

To relieve tension over council