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Homelessness
Asleep in Vancouver Council chambers
The Special Standing Committee of Council on Planning and Environment, in debate about SRAs, became a real-time Theatre of the Absurd
By Tavis Dodds
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Various groups descended on City Council February 6 to voice their concerns about the ongoing conversion and demolition of single residence accommodations in Vancouver, or “slums” as they’re better known as. But it became obvious very quickly that the City bureaucracy was not going to say anything on the subject, having been ordered to say nothing because of litigation over their mishandling of the issue. This didn’t stop them from talking though. The crowds of people packed into the council chambers had to sit through four hours of meaningless babble from staff. His Worship, Mayor Sullivan, was absent for most of the meeting. Just before lunch, the Anti-Poverty Committee took over the proceedings.
Young members of the APC performed a play entitled “A Tragedy in Two and a Half Acts.” The actors rolled around on the floor of council chambers to dramatize the plight of the victims of SRA conversions and demolitions. It was a very difficult play to follow with all the yelling going on, but the basic premise was that a group of tenants who are evicted by landlords and police find that the shelters are full, and are finally pepper-sprayed and arrested by the police for sleeping in the park.
The big no-no
During the play, one of the actors mentioned Vancouver City staff person Judy Graves’ name, and Councillor Kim Capri, chair of the meeting, retorted, saying, “You can insult us but you cannot insult our staff,” and walked out taking all the NPA councillors and City staff with her, only to return five minutes later with a police entourage. The police wrote down all the names of the people on the speaking list.
“I didn’t think it was very effective,” said an observer of the play. “It’s not how I think democracy works. The play wasn’t effective because Council doesn’t care. It was only effective in making half the council members vacate the council chambers, effectively saying that they don’t give a toss.”
Outside the building I met Peter Haywood, a homeless activist with APC. He had to leave the meeting because he didn’t feel comfortable with all the police looking at him. “It was just a bunch of crap,” he said of the meeting, “just a bunch of city workers talking without saying anything.”
A different language
When Eastside resident Bharbara Gudmundson addressed Council, she told them that it was like they were speaking a different language, because it didn’t sound like the City was saying anything understandable at all.
Kim Kerr, Executive Director at the Downtown Eastside Residents Association, talked about the closure of the Pender Hotel, which is among those for which the City is being sued. The police busted down all the doors to the rooms one day, and when residents replaced the doors, the police kicked them down again. The residents went on living without doors for months until the city closed the hotel down because there were no doors. Dozens of residents were forced out into the street with less than a day’s notice.
Other tales of the City
During his five minutes, Kerr touched on another SRA, the Burns Block, where there was a wiring problem, and instead of fixing it, the owner just kicked everyone out with a day’s notice.
“Where are these people supposed to go?” asked Councillor Cadman. Chairperson Kim Capri interrupted him to warn him not to get off the topic at hand.
When David Eby spoke, the City was even more careful not to say anything meaningful. Eby is a lawyer at the pro-bono law firm Pivot Legal Society that has been championing the litigation against the closures and evictions. The City just kept saying that they will have to speak, in camera, with the Legal Department and the Fire Department and other departments, and then call for an in-camera meeting with Council on the subject. A memo to start the process would be ready in no less than a month. After the meeting, Eby told me that he felt that “Council is saying that they’re going to do the absolute least that they can for poor people.”
During the lunch break, a young lady fell asleep face-down on the plush benches outside the chambers. She snored and slept there for hours. Several groups had brought sandwiches and bag lunches for people.
Dozens of other speakers took the podium and the meeting went on until 6 pm. Many heritage buildings and homes that were in jeopardy were mentioned, most notably the Empress Hotel. The Empress sold in October for $2.3 million and residents haven’t had heat ever since.
Also speaking . . .
Jim Lehto, of Urban Design & Development Consulting Ltd, spoke for an unidentified Gastown hotel owner and recommended no moratorium on SRA demolitions. Patrick K Prinster came to represent the owners of the Dominion Hotel and the Gastown Business Improvement Society. Prinster spoke against the proposed increase in conversion fees as well.
You can still view video clips of the meeting on the City’s website, but don’t expect a fraction of the excitement of “A Tragedy in Two and a Half Acts.” Almost anything interesting has been cut out of the limited City-provided video coverage.
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