25959 replies to this topic

[Sparky]

No thanks.

[Victoria Watcher]

He says the order ⁠— issued Monday by the park board's general manager ⁠— to remove tents will not be enforced by police making arrests or forcibly removing people from the park.

 

 

nobody was going to comply anyway.   they know the drill involves court action now.

 

https://www.cbc.ca/n...-park-1.5253472

 

Nielsen, who has been homeless for most of her life, is one of approximately 240 campers in the park.  The City of Vancouver says 100 beds in temporary modular buildings and SROs will be available for these campers on the Downtown Eastside.

 

Nielsen, 42, said she may take a single room occupancy unit if she's offered one but is skeptical about them, because she says there are too many rules placed on the occupants. 

 

"You have to follow rules that aren't right," Nielsen said outside of her tent.

 

She said regulations around having guest visits and curfew times are unfair for SRO occupants because people living in regular apartment buildings wouldn't be asked to obey the same rules.

 

 

https://www.cbc.ca/n...-park-1.5253472

 

sigh.

 

But, it's not just about the rules. Nielsen also said she prefers to live outside because it's healthier.

"In most of the buildings downtown. there's black mould and asbestos, and most of the workers have to wear masks but we don't. It makes no sense," she said. 

 

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 20 August 2019 - 05:39 PM.

[Nparker]

 

She said regulations around having guest visits and curfew times are unfair for SRO occupants because people living in regular apartment buildings wouldn't be asked to obey the same rules

People living in "regular" apartment buildings pay their own way.

[Victoria Watcher]

any person that has been homeless "most of their life" (at least if it's all in bc or canada) is quite frankly suffering from a mental disorder or severe addiction or another serious health issue.  

[Love the rock]

People living in "regular" apartment buildings pay their own way.

And following the rules set forth by the owner or wait for it ...
They get kicked to the curb .

[LJ]

On the Global news report it said "over 50 of the residents have accepted offers of accommodation."

 

So big of them to accept.

[Victoria Watcher]

In all, the city spends $1 billion a year fighting homelessness. That's $100,000 for every homeless man, woman and child in King County and yet the needle has mostly been moving in the wrong direction. Residents say there is a deep disconnect between them and those in charge and say elected officials are tone-deaf and offer up simple solutions to a complex problem.




https://www.foxnews....faith-in-system

[Rob Randall]

Los Angeles:

A homeless man who was a beloved musician and mentor on skid row was burned to death after a 38-year-old man allegedly set his tent on fire, police and activists said Wednesday.

The suspect, Jonathan Early, was arrested near the intersection of 6th and San Pedro streets shortly after the attack around 11:30 p.m. Monday

...

White said there have been a rash of tent fires in downtown Los Angeles recently.

“Oftentimes, those tent fires can be started for something as small as a dispute over the land you’re occupying,” he said.

 

[rmpeers]

According to CBC, homelessness and addiction are worsening on Victoria's streets.

https://www.cbc.ca/n...roups-1.5269447

[gstc84]

According to CBC anyone with basic observational skills, homelessness and addiction are worsening on Victoria's streets.

 

Fixed.

 

As someone who lives and works downtown, I've long been of the "things aren't nearly as bad as everyone says" camp, but in the last two weeks I've had some of the strangest and most frightening encounters I've had in the city, often right on Douglas or Fort St, in broad daylight. I'd never really felt unsafe anywhere in the city before, even on Pandora or Johnson at night, but it's getting wild out there.

[Mike K.]

Are you able to elaborate?

 

But you're right, in that we have a hard time believing the experiences of someone else. It's human nature to question/suspect until we have a first-hand experience.

[aastra]

 

...there are noticeably more drug users on the streets — who are experiencing homelessness, addiction and other problems — than there were a couple of years ago. It's highlighting a need for more shelters, advocates say, and increasing tensions with local businesses.

 

Concentrating large numbers of troubled individuals within the confines of the downtown core has caused problems, so the solution is to concentrate more troubled individuals within the confines of the downtown core?

 

I've asked it many times in recent years: do we really think downtown Victoria has an infinite capacity to absorb the social issues of Greater Victoria, Vancouver Island, and countless other cities and towns across Canada? No? Then what's the long-term plan?

 

 

...than there were a couple of years ago...

 

Sure, but a couple of years ago there were noticeably more users on the streets than there were a couple of years before that. Every day is the first day all over again. And the authorities keep doing what they're doing because Joe Public just never seems to clue in.

 

 

He said homeless services need to be decentralized from the downtown area to lessen the negative impact on local businesses.

 

Obviously. It's long past time. Downtown Victoria didn't produce the issues, so why should downtown Victoria be hosting the issues? Why are downtown streets artificially burdened while streets in the neighbourhoods and suburbs (and other cities and towns) are artificially exempted? We're talking about real people, right? From a wide range of communities, income levels, walks of life, etc.? Why should all roads lead to downtown Victoria whenever we talk about social issues? All roads don't lead to downtown Victoria when we talk about shopping, recreation, infrastructure investment, etc.

 

(I know this will fall on many deaf ears because anti-downtown sentiments are so entrenched, but come on. It's beyond absurd now.)

[rmpeers]

I never understood how anyone could argue with a straight face that it's a good idea to cram so many vulnerable people into a small area and expect that their lives would improve. The current aplroach is beyond ridiculous and things just get sadder and sadder.

One step would be to stop indulging the wingnut advocates and "academics" whose plans and policies do not help anyone. Stop listening to these people. Their ideas DO NOT WORK.

Edited by rmpeers, 04 September 2019 - 01:38 PM.

[Rob Randall]

The Coalition To End Homelessness, which has been around for over ten years, and whose mission is to end homelessness says things are getting better, which they can say for sure because it consistently says in their colourful annual reports that things are better than they were 12 months earlier so ipso facto if things were bad in 2008 but have consistently improving then my high school algebra tells me things must be pretty much solved by now.

[Victoria Watcher]

The Coalition To End Homelessness, 

 

let's review their financials for 2018:

 

revenue

 

government grants $433,801

contributions from other charities $176,091

individual donations $5,967

corporate donations $855

membership fees $810

 

https://victoriahome...8-FINAL-Web.pdf

 

that's pretty low membership fees:

 

Like all Canadian charities, the Coalition to End Homelessness belongs to its members. Members set our constitution and bylaws, elect our Board of Directors, and ensure that the work we do supports our mission to end homelessness in the Capital Region.

 

 

they have 35 corporate members ($25).  all charities or government agencies except the dvba and the chamber and gt hiring and the bay centre.

 

https://victoriahome...ved/membership/

 

looks like they have zero individual memberships at $10.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 04 September 2019 - 02:50 PM.

[Nparker]

I had the "pleasure" of travelling along the 900 block of Pandora in a vehicle today. The boulevard was "livelier" than usual with its representation of human misery or as Her Worseship - on the rare occasions she is actually in Victoria - might say, it was "messy", but in the good, SJW way.

[shoeflack]

I moved downtown in November 2014 (essentially since day one of Lisa Helps' first term), and since then have lived in two places both within a one block radius of Our Place. While I've been fortunate to never have experienced any frightening situations, anyone with half a brain can see it's gotten progressively worse.

 

I've said it before and I'll say it again, because I think it's the saddest thing. If someone was legitimately in danger screaming for help, I would ignore it. Not because I don't care, but at this point I cannot distinguish between the usual nightly yelling matches of domestic street bliss and an honest cry for help.

 

Both places I've lived at, the strata has been plagued with increased costs associated with security/break-ins/garbage/etc. Don't get me wrong, downtown is an awesome place to live...but man, sometimes it really sucks.

[Victoria Watcher]

Alana says she's been addicted to heroin for over a year after succumbing to depression. She sleeps on Pandora Street in downtown Victoria, outside Our Place Society, a support centre for people experiencing homelessness.

 

There are "too many people and not enough beds to sleep on" in the shelter, says Alana, who asked that her real name be withheld. 

 

She says she doesn't stay at local shelters because they're overflowing with people, bed bugs and head lice.

 

But on the street, other drug users steal her valuables, defecate in public, and bully her for being kind. 

 

But through all the hardship she said it's important that drug users stick together to be safe. 

"In seconds your life could change …You could be dead," she said of the dangers of overdosing. 

 

 

https://www.cbc.ca/n...roups-1.5269447

 

For Alana, part of the solution is for the public to "put aside their differences" and learn to be respectful of people in her situation.

 

"The hatred people have for users, and the disgusted looks I get now — it's unbelievable," she said through tears.

 

 

ok fine.  but i'd genuinely like to hear more from cbc or her on how she got to the street from her issues.  where was she a year ago or two years ago?

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 04 September 2019 - 03:30 PM.

[LJ]

Why should all roads lead to downtown Victoria whenever we talk about social issues?

 

Because your Mayor said "bring it on", mine didn't.

[A Girl is No one]

And as with every single one of these articles, our place and Coolaid jump in to make a plea for more tax payer funded facilities and more money, while NEVER being questioned about their lack of success.....☹️