Only market
regulation &
government action
will bring us
affordable
housing
We need government to level the playing field
"The supply-side argument has been the development industry's mantra from time immemorial, and its efficacy as a solution to high prices is debatable," Adrienne Tanner noted last February in the Globe and Mail.
Indeed. Those of us who do not have hundreds of thousands of dollar to spare have only our governments to level the playing field.
Developers must be required to build rental and affordable housing, if they are to be allowed to build the very profitable for-sale market housing. The Vision Council allowed the building of tower after tower with very few strings attached for developers, allowing for billionaire profits while the gap between the poor and the rich kept increasing. This has to stop.
Our municipal and other governments must continue to work to reduce speculation. Something as simple as the speculation tax on empty homes, is having a significant effect, for example. This tax was brought in by the Vision Council last year in response to the years of public protest of Vancouver's skyrocketing housing prices.
Most importantly, the federal and provincial governments must be pressured to give the city money for quality affordable housing.
Copy Of -We need government to level the playing field
Developers must be required to build rental and affordable housing, if they are to be allowed to build the very profitable for-sale market housing. The Vision Council allowed the building of tower after tower with very few strings attached for developers, allowing for billionaire profits while the gap between the poor and the rich kept increasing. This has to stop.
Our municipal and other governments must continue to work to reduce speculation. Something as simple as the speculation tax on empty homes, is having a significant effect, for example. This tax was brought in by the Vision Council last year in response to the years of public protest of Vancouver's skyrocketing housing prices.
Most importantly, the federal and provincial governments must be pressured to give the city money for affordable quality housing. It has happened before, and in one of the richest countries of earth, it should happen again. High quality low-rise affordable co-operative housing was built in BC and elsewhere in Canada from 1973 to 1995 under the auspices of the federal government. [Click on the image for a brief look at the co-ops historical timeline]
We need affordable, not subsandard housing
If we settle for substandard housing for our poorer citizens, we are settling for a substandard city - a city of growing visible inequality.
Unwilling to squeeze their developer friends for some significant social housing, and under heavy public pressure, the Vision Council took the easy way out. In early 2017, they came up with 250 square foot boxes which they call "housing" -- "Temporary Modular Housing"
It has happened before, and in one of the richest countries of earth, it should happen again. High quality low-rise affordable co-operative housing was built in BC and elsewhere in Canada from 1973 to 1995 under the auspices of the federal government. [Click on the image for a brief look at the co-ops historical timeline]