Stephen Elliott~Buckley

RE: https://mstdn.ca/@thetyee/116137217401258194

Imagine making the stupidly rich, and only them, pay for housing for the 4,000 unhoused people in BC?

1. Vancouver and Surrey each have over $10b in their accumulated surplus, only a portion of it is designated for specific things.
2. Cities, the province and the feds own so much developable land, even just in the lower mainland.
3. We can borrow just $1b from the surpluses, and (see below)

1/3

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Feb 26 at 5:43pmMastodon for Android
Show threadStephen Elliott~Buckley1d ago

...

3. We can borrow just $1b from the surpluses, and build 24/7 supportive housing for 4,000 people on land that is public already, and staff it with social workers already deployed.
4. We pay it back with the proceeds of the empty house tax, in Vancouver and the province, in less than 10 years. Like 6-8, now that the 2026 BC budget has increased their empty home rate.
5. Marc Lee with the CCPA costed this all out in 2016. So we've known how to do it for a decade. We just won't.

2/3

Show threadStephen Elliott~Buckley1d ago

Here's the costing:

https://www.policyalternatives.ca/news-research/getting-serious-about-affordable-housing-towards-a-plan-for-metro-vancouver/

Getting Serious About Affordable Housing: Towards a Plan for Metro Vancouver - CCPA

Download 1.17 MB48 pages The housing market in Metro Vancouver is broken, and we need more rational planning and management in the interests of local people. This paper proposes a bold affordable housing solutions agenda, including an ambitious program of public re-investment in social and co-op housing, putting the brakes on absentee ownership, and progressive property taxation options.

CCPA -
Show threadAccordionBruce1d ago

@Maxfieldripken
But they’ll throw 30 story towers up on the Greater #DTES (Gastown) to raise rents

Despite neighbourhood complaints that it will further increase homelessness in the city

But “decreasing my property values” weighs more than “increasing homelessness”

Even though they are two sides of the same literal coin 💰
#Vancouver