CO-CHAIRS’ REPORT

Coalition Annual General Meeting June 28, 2011

DEAN:

Today we celebrate our successes and recognize our challenges.

Reflecting on the year 2010-2011, it is obvious that we have come this far thanks to our funding partners: BC Housing, Capital Regional District, United Way of Greater Victoria, Vancouver Island Health Authority, Victoria Foundation, the federal government’s Homelessness Partnering Strategy, and the City of Victoria.

I want to call special attention to the people who sent donations for Streets to Homes, Homelessness Prevention Fund, Project Connect and Coalition Connect for Families. You are evidence that every little bit helps when we are trying to improve people’s lives.

I would like to thank my co-chair, Tony Joe, and my colleagues on the Coalition’s Leadership Council. Today marks the end of Tony’s term and I appreciate his contributions. Thank you, Tony.

As a quick refresher on our origins: The 2007 Mayor’s Task Force report, Breaking the Cycle of Mental Illness, Addictions and Homelessness stated that in order to succeed, we needed a community-based Coalition and a commitment to a “housing first with supports” approach.

Clearly, the priority was to create new housing.

In addition, we needed to establish Assertive Community Treatment teams (known as ACT teams), integrate community services, and develop a prevention plan.

Most importantly, we needed to involve the community in what we were doing.

I am very pleased to report that we have this core infrastructure in place and are hitting some of our targets. We are continuing to learn and expand our knowledge.

TONY:

NEW HOUSING

In the past year, Coalition partners created 258 new subsidized housing units and provided 177 new rent supplements, for a total of 435 new units of housing.

Notable Coalition partner projects include:

Camas Gardens, a new development on Humboldt Street with 44 units for singles and couples, is operated by Pacifica Housing.

Olympic Vista on Carey Road, the re-purposed athletes’ village housing, has 36 units for seniors and is operated by Cool Aid.

The City of Victoria took great initiative in acquiring two Travellers Inns; one is already open and has 36 units for singles and couples.

NEW PROGRAMS

Streets to Homes is a two-year pilot project in which we will move 120 people from homelessness to homes. We have already housed 62 people.

Through an agreement with ROMS BC (Rental Owners and Managers Society of BC), people can now move from supported housing to private market units. Made possible with the assistance of BC Housing rent supplements, more units will become available for people who are stabilized. Support workers funded by the United Way help with the transition.

NEW SUPPORTS
There are now three ACT teams and one VICOT team serving 198 clients, with the capacity to assist another 100 individuals. Many clients suffer from severe mental illness or addictions. Together with Outreach teams from partner agencies, they are playing a critical role. They helped 535 people who had been homeless find housing this past year, some in the 435 new units. Many are in the private market and many remain housed.

NEW LEARNING

In July 2010, we completed our prevention plan, and Coalition partners got straight to work to implement measures to prevent people from tipping into homelessness.

This comprehensive prevention plan has two priorities: create more tools to prevent homelessness, and intervene early with unique populations with heightened risks of becoming homeless. Coalition partners have already implemented several initiatives:

The Homelessness Prevention Fund, underwritten by private donors and managed by the Victoria Foundation, provides emergency grants to help stabilize people in their housing.

A cognitive disability checklist created by Community Living, VIHA and the Schizophrenia Society to help frontline workers with intake and client service.

]-->In November, 2010, we received the report Finding Our Path: Aboriginal Housing and Homelessness. Recommendations identified in the report include bringing more Aboriginal people into the Coalition’s Leadership Council and committees and advocating with government and community leaders for new Aboriginal Housing.

AAnd in December, 2010, Leadership Council endorsed Housing and Harm Reduction: A Policy Framework for Greater Victoria. The City of Victoria passed a motion on January 27, 2011 to approve the Housing and Harm Reduction Policy Framework. The City of Victoria, Vancouver Island Health Authority and community service providers are developing next steps.

NEW COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

At last year’s AGM, we committed to launching a Community Engagement Strategy to connect with the community, including young people. The goal was to help more of us in Greater Victoria understand the root causes of homelessness and encourage more of us to become part of the solution.

So we did.

We also said we would reach out to youth. With the assistance of some local professionals who are honing their skills with Leadership Victoria, we launched the YAH youth video contest in March 2011. We ran some of the winning videos before lunch, and plan to use them for educational and promotional purposes.

I think some of our filmmakers are here today. Please stand and be recognized.

There are also some of our Leadership Victoria volunteers here. Could you also stand?

We’ve met with MLAs, presented to six municipal governments, several CRD committees, and over 25 community groups.

DEAN:

T The District of North Saanich voted to increase its contribution to the Regional Housing Trust Fund by $5,000 this year, and is piloting a secondary suites program.

In fact, several municipalities have piloted secondary suites in their communities, recognizing that this is another solution to creating affordable rental housing.

<!--The CRD has increased its Regional Housing Trust Fund by the cost of living, and repurposed an extra one-million dollars for 2011/12 towards creating housing for people who are homeless or unstably housed.

<!--Several local municipalities have revised their Official Community Plans, and others are in the process of doing so. Many, for example, the CRD, City of Victoria, Saanich, Langford and Sooke have all made affordable housing a priority in their communities.

<!--We’ve launched:

Social media tools, including Facebook and Twitter

A blog that allows us to reach new, untapped audiences, and

Conversation Cafes to give people who are experiencing homelessness and poverty with opportunities to provide their opinions; and

Created a newsletter to keep members and supporters abreast of our progress.

So yes, we are doing what we said we would do, and we are seeing results. People are getting housed and staying housed. Clients of the ACT teams and VICOT (the Victoria Integrated Community Outreach Team), are stabilizing.

We know what needs to happen to solve homelessness in our Region.

we know we need to do more -- and do it more quickly.

Homelessness isn’t only experienced by people with substance use or mental health problems – it affects families, children, grandparents and any other person who cannot afford to pay for food and rent.

Like last year at this time, we must stress once again the need for more permanent, stable, affordable housing.

TONY:

The Future!

We are shifting our focus to future initiatives, and are looking for the next set of pipeline projects. We are looking from Sooke to Saanich, and everywhere between.

We are seeking funding for 120 Gorge (a project for Aboriginal families and youth) and for the St. Vincent de Paul project in Saanich, which is for homeless women and their children).

We will continue to build on the Streets to Homes Program.

And we look forward to the completion of 23 additional units of supported housing at Swift House.

Why? …Because…

1,958 unique individuals used our emergency shelters in 2010/11. The shelters are at an average of 95% capacity.

There are 18,305 people in Greater Victoria who live in core housing need, and 21,180 people who used our food banks in March 2010. The evidence is clear that we have a widening economic gap in Greater Victoria – and British Columbia.

When the Coalition was formed we said that that homelessness wasn’t created overnight, and we said that it won’t be solved overnight. We have said over and over again, that no one agency or level of government can do this alone. We need ending homelessness to be the top priority of all levels of government.

We will ask them to make the case that ending homelessness in Greater Victoria must become their top priority.

We all know that stable housing is the foundation of a civil and healthy society. Without stable housing, achieving and sustaining employment, education, food security and basic health care are impossible.

Ending homelessness is more than essential – it is achievable!

With innovation, partnership, and dedicated funding to create more affordable housing, it is achievable!

We ARE the Coalition to END Homelessness!

Thank you.