Isitt wants housing, not more tent cities

Re: “Be on guard for more tent cities,” letter, Sept. 25. Several letter-writers have commented on my position on “tent cities,” so I’m providing a response.

My view is that temporary sheltering areas (tent cities) are preferable to unregulated outdoor sheltering in parks, alleyways and other public and private spaces in our city.

They provide a minimum standard of safety and amenity (drinking water supply, washrooms, access to support services) for people who are unhoused, while managing wider impacts on neighbours and the community more effectively that a “dispersion model” throughout the parks system and downtown.

It is false to claim that I “want more tent cities,” as the letter-writer claims.

My position on homelessness is crystalclear and has been for more than a decade: We need action by all levels of government to mobilize resources through the tax system to build sufficient housing with supports for the most marginalized members of our community, so no one has to sleep in parks, alleyways or tent cities.

The Regional Housing First Program, which I drafted in response to public input received on the proposal for a temporary sheltering area in Topaz Park, has now mobilized $60 million toward this goal, with advocacy continuing for an additional $30-million federal contribution. Coun. Ben Isitt Victoria