The price tag for the City of Victoria鈥檚 proposed supportive housing project has dropped to $30 million from $50 million after the plan came under closer scrutiny. It鈥檚 a good thing to reduce costs, but anyone planning to spend millions of other people鈥檚 dollars should be meticulous about details and careful in calculations.
Last month, Victoria councillors endorsed putting a resolution to the Capital Regional District asking it to investigate borrowing $50 million 鈥� at a cost it estimated at $11.18 a year per household 鈥� to build 367 units of supportive housing.
It also called for an annual provincial contribution of $7.73 million, or $21,064 per unit, toward operating costs.
The estimated cost of the project was lowered following a meeting Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps held with stakeholders, including government agencies and social-service providers, to fine-tune the proposal.
The Greater Victoria Coalition to End Homelessness estimates that 367 units of supportive housing are needed to end chronic homelessness in the capital region.
鈥淏ut then further parsing into that [revealed] 185 of those units were meant to be new and 182 were meant to be [provided] through rent supplements,鈥� Helps said.
The city will now ask for the Capital Region Hospital District to help in borrowing $30 million. The province would be asked to provide $8.2 million a year toward operating costs and another $982,800 to cover 182 rental supplements.
Given that a closer look at the plan dropped the price by $20 million 鈥� not exactly a rounding error in a $50-million project 鈥� it appears even closer scrutiny would be wise.
And tough questions should not be dodged. Should the money for supportive housing be spent in one of the most expensive housing markets in sa国际传媒? Would the money go further by building elsewhere?
What will supportive housing look like? Will there be funds for dealing with mental illness and addictions? Yes, the first step in curing homelessness is to provide a home, but more steps are needed to address the conditions that lead to homelessness.
People have asked: If you build it, will they come? They wonder if the attraction of free housing, along with the region鈥檚 mild climate, will bring more homeless people to Victoria. It鈥檚 not heartless to ask that 鈥� the answer to another city鈥檚 homelessness problems is not to export them to the Island.
Spreading the cost over the whole capital region is the right approach. Victoria carries a disproportionate share of the burden when it comes to social problems.
It is also appropriate to ask the province to pay some of the operating costs, and the federal government should also be tapped to help. When senior governments cut back on such things as mental-health facilities, social services and housing programs, the burden increases for municipalities.
Homelessness is a blight on the urban landscape and a drain on the public purse. It鈥檚 in the best interests of everyone to find solutions. It will take bold steps; we just need to be sure they are not reckless steps.
