West Kelowna council hopefuls asked if they back homeless shelter
Today’s question: With homelessness becoming more of a problem, do you think the City of West Kelowna should support the building of a homeless shelter in the community? If so, what form should this support take?
MAYOR: MARY MANDARINO: A community needs to have a heart. Mental illness, low income, addictions are all contributing factors to homelessness. As nayor of West Kelowna, I would take a leadership role to address this issue. I would actively work with all agencies that address the needs of the homeless members of our society. Sadly, they will always be with us, however we can “lighten their load” through compassion and understanding and assisting them to find security.
GORD MILSOM: If a suitable location for a shelter is found within the municipality, then the City, in consultation with the public, should be supportive. The City could help expedite land use bylaw amendments. The funding of costs, such as lease payments, for a temporary shelter or the funding of any permanent transitional housing should be paid for by BC Housing. The City should support, in collaboration with WFN, the good work done by the West Kelowna Partners for a Healthy Community committee and the Shelter Society, plus lobby the Province for any health services needed to help address this complex issue.
CITY COUNCIL: PHILIP AKINS: Homelessness is a rapidly-growing concern in West Kelowna, and at some point — possibly in the near future — we may want to build a shelter to help address it. In the next four years, however, I believe we should instead be offering more financial support to existing service providers in Kelown. This would, I think, be a more efficient use of resources for now, and in the meantime get down to work with our own community groups, the Westbank First Nation, and the Province to establish a longterm strategy for homelessness in West Kelowna.
JEROME CHUNG: My philosophy is that “when you built it (homeless shelters), they will all come.” Question is, can the City of West Kelowna be able to house all these homeless people from all over the province, let alone from the cities that shut down squatters in vacant properties, given the fact that we have limited land area (only 47.7 sq mi) for the common residents of this city. I believe the provincial and federal governments have the mandate to address this problem and allocate it/them to a city with larger areas to accommodate them.
RICK deJONG: As a city councillor, I asked for and supported the first steps towards addressing the homelessness issues in West Kelowna. To better understand the issues and challenges, City of West Kelowna and Westbank First Nation staff worked together to complete a point in time homeless count/survey this past summer. We now need to be working closely with Westbank First Nation, the Provincial Government and organizations such as the John Howard Society to advocate for local services to begin to help those in need here in West Kelowna.
BRAD DOBBIN: The Province already has a plan to address those issues working forward with our City.
RUSTY ENSIGN: This is an issue that we have to face. We don’t want to, but we have to. The city should not build a homeless shelter. This is a provincial and/or non-profit responsibility. The City can support this issue by being involved in the Journey Home initiative that the City of Kelowna is doing. For every dollar invested in helping the homeless, two are saved in health care and policing. Not to mention crime. Homelessness is a regional issue. How and where to put a homeless shelter will take proper public consultation and be a very contentious issue.
DOUG FINDLATER: West Kelowna already has a seasonal nighttime and daytime homeless shelter supported by the provincial government and a grant-in-aid from the City. It’s operated by church and community volunteers. It should be continued with careful consideration to the long-term location; and provision of supporting health, employment and housing services for exit strategies from homelessness by those clients. Costs are borne by the Province, however the City can continue to facilitate and advocate for needed services.
JASON FRIESEN: I definitely believe that we need to address the need for a homeless shelter in the city in collaboration with Westbank First Nation. We need to work with, support and lobby BC Housing, nonprofit housing/shelter societies and theB.C. Not for Profit Housing Association to come up with a solution. Support in the way of land provision, tax exemptions, grants, etc. should be offered to ensure that this is addressed.
JOE GLUSKA: Currently there are close to 75 homeless people based on gathered information. Getting all the stakeholders together to best use our resources is key. As a number of the homeless are First Nations, the WFN needs to be included in developing a plan for a residence, counselling, drug and alcohol rehab, so we can provide the best opportunity at success.
STEPHEN JOHNSTON: As the past president of the West Kelowna Shelter Society, I’ve seen first hand the effects of homelessness in our community. WKSS and BC Housing believe in and support the housingfirst model more than providing shelters. West Kelowna should advocate for subsidized housing units that help get people off the streets and provide a number of supports for individuals in vulnerable situations. We need to partner in the Journey Home strategy and work as advocated for these services. Again our role will be engaging in regional planning and advocacy not directly funding these types of projects.
ROSALIND NEIS: Our recent count showed that roughly 75 people responded needed assistance and nearly half were of indigenous background. Those numbers do not warrant a stand-alone facility in my opinion and we should work with WFN to have a facility on their lands that is shared for the benefit of all people. TIFFANY PARE: Did not reply WINSTON WAMMER: I believe more collaboration and realistic information needs to be gathered. How many are homeless, who are they, where are they from and what are the circumstances that caused them to be homeless? Only after getting all the facts should we commit to anything and the goal must be to solve the homeless issue, not just bandaid it. There are many groups that deal with this situation and they must get together and collectively come up with a plan.
GORDON WIEBE: I think the City of West Kelowna should support the agencies and people who are already on the frontlines of homelessness. In West Kelowna, that includes: St. George’s Anglican Church, Our Lady of Lords/ St. Vincent de Paul, Emmanuel Church, the United Church, etc. Homelessness is a widespread issue requiring the resources and coordinated efforts of the federal and provincial governments. Any proposal to build a shelter should be a part of long term solution provided by those levels of government.
BRYDEN WINSBY: Municipal governments do not provide or finance daycare facilities, nursing homes and such. Should we provide a homeless shelter? No. Should we support efforts to provide such a facility? Probably, because senior governments have dropped the ball. Under Canada’s Constitution, responsibility for health and social welfare services rests with the provincial and territorial governments. Ottawa provides funding, but in 1990 imposed spending limits on Ontario, B.C. and Alberta. In this province there has been downloading of services to local government ever since. We can help facilitate and provide limited funds, but cannot expect local taxpayers to bear the full burden.
CAROL ZANON: The city partnered with Westbank First Nation and several agencies to do the first Westside homelessness assessment, a snapshot in time. This data will support policy development, funding requests and future initiatives. The effort must be collaborative. Finding the right site to do the right thing to protect vulnerable people is the next challenge. I hear that the Province is actively looking for temporary housing until more permanent supportive housing can be found on the Westside. I see our role as one advocating for community outreach programs, and facilitating supportive services.
JAYSON ZILKIE: I am in support of solving the issue of homelessness. CWK needs to be a key stakeholder and take a leadership position. BC Housing is not wiling to fund any large scale homeless shelters. There are other opportunities and locations that can be utilized for the homeless in our city. We also need to partner with various groups including WFN to collaborate on a long-term, shared solution. CWK should be guiding the conversation and connecting the various groups in order to solve it. It’s not all on CWK, there are many people if called upon are willing to partake in this solution.