'Nowhere to go': Future remains unclear for hundreds living in tents on Vancouver's Downtown Eastside
Several city-supplied storage containers along Vancouver's East Hastings Street are now full to the brim. However, many of those living in tents on the sidewalks and road haven’t moved.
Providing storage for people's belongings in one part of the City of Vancouver's plan to clear the encampment on the Downtown Eastside. However, a plan for where the people themselves are supposed to go has not yet come together.
“There’s nowhere to go,” said Darren Daugherty, who lives in a tent near Main Street. “People say that we can sign up for BC Housing, but, if there was housing, how come people aren't getting shifted there?”
Dozens living in tents on the street started filling out BC Housing forms ever since the City started enforcing an order from the Vancouver fire chief to remove tents and structures in the area.
“We’ve had 1,016 fires with damage in this area just this year alone,” said Capt. Matthcw Trudeau of Vancouver Fire & Rescue Services on Tuesday.
BC Housing admits space is tight and that it can’t currently accommodate the hundreds of people who were ordered to move.
Kristy Wilson also lives in a tent near Main Street and says she’s applied for housing, but isn’t sure she’d live in a Single Room Occupancy building even if she was accepted.
“I’m worried about it, yeah,” said Wilson. “I’m terrified to be in one of those places. It’s pretty sad that I feel more safe living on Main and Hastings at an intersection than in an SRO downtown.”
With a civic election coming up in October, one opposition party says the city needs a new housing plan.
“What we’ve seen is a lack of leadership from the mayor’s office,” said Mike Klassen, a council candidate with the ABC Party. “The mayor has been talking about the quantity of units, but the fact is that we have to look at the quality of units. I mean, how bad do these units have to be for people to prefer to sleep in a tent on Hastings?”
Despite requests to Mayor Kennedy Stewart’s office and the city, CTV News has yet to receive a response on specifically where they expect the people living in tents to go, and when that move may happen. For now, many say they aren’t going anywhere.
“I guess we’ll see in the future,” said Daugherty.
The City of Vancouver has said it’s working with BC Housing and non-profits for possible solutions, including temporary emergency shelters.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.
Full parole granted to man convicted in notorious 'McDonald's murders' in Cape Breton
The Parole Board of Canada has granted full parole to one of three men convicted in the brutal murders of three McDonald's restaurant workers in Cape Breton more than 30 years ago.
Rainfall warnings of up to 80 mm among weather alerts in effect for 6 provinces
Rainfall warnings of up to 90 millimetres and other alerts have been issued for six Canadian provinces, according to the latest forecasts.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
Bus plunges off a bridge in South Africa, killing 45 people. An 8-year-old child is only survivor
A bus carrying worshippers headed to an Easter festival plunged off a bridge on a mountain pass and burst into flames in South Africa on Thursday, killing at least 45 people, authorities said.
Calgary bridges remain closed due to ongoing police incident
Calgary police have shut down a number of bridges into and out of the downtown core as officers deal with a distraught individual.