The city of Vancouver leased a hotel on Howe Street in 2014 in response to a homeless camp in Oppenheimer Park. The city’s lease expires Nov. 5, after which the hotel will be demolished and redeveloped.DARRYL DYCK/The Globe and Mail
Vancouver city council has approved a grant to a non-profit agency to house a small portion of low-income residents who live in a former downtown hotel slated for demolition, leaving more than 100 people still waiting to learn what will happen to them in six months.
The grant will provide $38,000 to the Atira Women's Resource Society to house 39 people at its Patrick Anthony Residence, a single-room occupancy building on East Hastings Street in the Downtown Eastside.
They are among the 171 people living in a former Quality Inn that the city leased in 2014 in response to a homeless camp in Oppenheimer Park. The city's lease expires on Nov. 5, after which the building will be demolished and redeveloped.
Ethel Whitty, director of services for the homeless at Carnegie Centre, a community centre in the Downtown Eastside, said outreach workers have been working to assess tenants and relocation options.
"We'll continue to house people as we find spaces for them," said Ms. Whitty. "The city is working really hard on trying to find some other block like the Atira block, so … we have six months to do [it] and there's every intention to find a place for everyone."
The former Quality Inn location, which faced pushback from local residents when it was converted to low-income housing, currently provides 24-hour staffing and support to tenants who are at risk of homelessness. The site will eventually be redeveloped into secured market rental housing.
Ms. Whitty said she's confident the city will find housing for all of the residents currently at the former hotel, though she acknowledged challenges, including the city's low vacancy rate.
"Every case will be different," she said. "It just really is dependent. They might have to lease a place and put a timeline on it like the Quality Inn did, or they might be able to buy something. It's not a given what the end date will be on anything."
Janice Abbott, CEO of Atira Women's Resource Society, which supports housing for both men and women from marginalized communities, said the grant will supplement operating costs of the Patrick Anthony building, which currently has 67 rooms, 28 of which are occupied.
"When the building is full, maintenance costs are going to increase; because we have twice as many tenants, so staffing costs will increase," she said. "
Residents from the former hotel, she said, will likely match the building's current demographic of older men.
"There's a couple of men who have been in that building for more than 30 years," she said. "We're trying to honour the building demographic."
She said the grant from the city is for one year, but her hope is for long-term housing.
"This is kind of a unique situation. We're entering into a property management agreement with the owner, not a lease, and there is a distinct, significant distinction. So, it's our intention to continue. Those are the city's parameters, not necessarily the parameters that I have with the owner," she said.
Abigail Bond, director of housing policy and projects for the City of Vancouver, said there are additional challenges in finding homes for individuals who require supportive housing.
She confirmed the city is looking at a range of options and added the former Quality Inn is currently not taking in any new residents before demolition in November.
Since the facility in the former hotel opened, about 60 tenants have moved on to long-term housing, with new residents filling in those vacancies. As the demolition approaches, residents who move out will not be replaced.