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VANCOUVER — Vancouver’s council has approved Mayor Ken Sim’s plan to temporarily halt net new supportive housing projects in the city.
The change is a disappointment for B.C.’s Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon, who said Thursday that they know supportive housing works to give people a second chance.
A news release from Sim’s office says it will allow the city to focus on “renewing aging, deteriorating stock,” and transition temporary modular housing into permanent homes, while pushing for more supply elsewhere in the region.
The city says the pause doesn’t apply to housing for seniors, women, families, youth aging out of care, housing related to health care, or “social housing with occasional supports.”
Councillors heard from more than 80 residents, many voicing concerns about the proposal, but the motion passed with six votes in favour on Wednesday night.
Kahlon told reporters in the legislature that the move by the city creates uncertainty in housing for those who are most vulnerable.
“(Supportive housing) gets people out of encampments, it gets them out of parks, and it gives them another chance in life. We’ve seen so much success across British Columbia, and I think the vote is disappointing,” he said.
“We’ve been assured that the projects that are in the pipeline now will still proceed. But it does create some uncertainty for the future.”
Coun. Lisa Dominato was among three who voted against Sim’s plan, saying it would “likely exacerbate homelessness.”
She said the plan won’t compel other cities to step up and that it’s still unclear which supportive housing projects would go ahead.
“There was no consultation with the non-profit housing sector providers and the narrow scope of this motion, while I understand the intent of having exemptions, it’s actually stigmatizing,” she said.
Dominato is a member of Sim’s ABC party. Another councillor who voted against the plan, Rebecca Bligh, was ejected from the party this month after speaking out against the housing plan.
When asked if the province could force Vancouver to build supportive housing, Kahlon said his ministry is “not at that point now” because projects in the queue are going ahead.
“We’re going to continue to advocate with them to find solutions, to support vulnerable people. That is our responsibility,” he said.
“It’s a conversation we’ll have with the City of Vancouver. It’s too early to speak about those matters.”
Nick Wells, a spokesman for the Union Gospel Mission, said in an interview Thursday that pausing new supportive housing will have a real impact on Vancouver residents and could harm marginalized groups.
“We realize that revitalizing aging housing stocks, like (single room occupancy hotels) is critical, but pausing the construction of new supportive housing risks making the overall housing crisis in Vancouver even worse,” he said.
Sim said in the news release that the motion “is about making sure supportive housing works for those who need it most, while ensuring better outcomes for everyone.”
“For too long, Vancouver has shouldered more than its fair share of the region’s supportive housing, yet conditions in the Downtown Eastside continue to deteriorate,” he said.
BC Housing’s numbers show 1,825 supportive housing units open in Vancouver and 1,870 shelter spaces.
That is by far the largest share in Metro Vancouver, followed by Surrey with 589 supportive housing units and 580 shelter spaces.
Wells said 78 per cent of people surveyed in the latest Vancouver homeless count, conducted in 2023, said they were living in the city when they became homeless.
“So, this is not an issue of people coming from away to stay in Vancouver. This is an issue of local residents who are needing supportive housing, and need that help from other organizations and supportive housing providers to lift them up,” he said.
The freeze has led one philanthropic foundation to donate $1 million to a service provider in the Downtown Eastside.
A statement from the charity First United said the North Family Foundation is donating the money because of the council’s decision.
“There has never been a more urgent time for all sectors and communities to come together to respond to the complex crises in our city,” the foundation said in the statement.
First United said it’s redeveloping a site on East Hastings Street into an 11-storey building with four floors devoted to its programs and services and seven floors of affordable housing for Indigenous people, including 35 supportive housing units.
Construction is scheduled to be completed in late 2025.
Vancouver’s plan says city staff will report twice a year on regional progress on supportive housing development and homelessness, adding that the move will not affect in-progress projects, applications submitted within six months of the motion passing or initiatives replacing existing units.
Data provided by BC Housing list 795 supportive housing units “underway” in Vancouver as of the end of September 2024, which covers “any project that is in the planning, proposal or construction phase.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 27, 2025.
Brieanna Charlebois and Ashley Joannou, The Canadian Press
