City cracks down on CRAB Park encampment

Good morning,

For anyone who hates sports, you can skip this paragraph.

So, are the Canucks actually — and I cannot believe I’m typing this — good this year? This bandwagon fan is ready to jump back on the wagon after Wednesday’s dominating performance against Edmonton. Of course, like any good Canucks fan, I’ll be off the bandwagon after the next loss!

Okay, non-sports fans can come back. We don’t devote too much time to sports coverage, but sometimes it’s fun to write about.

There’s very little sports coverage in today’s newsletter. Instead, we’ve got:

• ⛺ A crackdown on Vancouver’s CRAB PARK encampament

• 🏠 An interesting poll on low-income renting and what it says about the housing situation

• 📅 A list of all the events this weekend

Let’s get started!

— Geoff Sharpe, Vancity newsletter writer

HOMELESSNESS

City cracks down on encampment

What happened: The city is cracking down on an encampment that’s grown next to CRAB Park, the site of a legal encampment the courts ruled is allowed to stay, according to Global.

Park rangers dropped off notices to campers on Wednesday, notifying them that they were violating the overnight campaign bylaw. The space in question is next to CRAB Park, which means it is not part of the court ruling.

• Encampment residents told Global they had to camp there because there was nowhere else to go, as CRAB Park was completely full.

Zoom out: Homelessness in Vancouver has spiked to the highest level ever recorded, with 2,420 people on the streets according to a recent report by the Homelessness Services Association of B.C. The city previously cracked down on encampments on Hastings, citing fire risks, with people using propane and other flammable products next to buildings.

• Mayor Ken Sim mentioned at a conference this week that things like propane tanks in tents could’ve taken out an entire city block if they exploded and caused fires. Advocates told CTV that was unlikely.

What comes next: The city is clearly taking a proactive approach to preventing any more permanent encampments from appearing. The last thing they want is to have another Hastings Street situation which required a multi-day, multi-organizational clearing effort. The problem is most of these people have nowhere to go.

Dig deeper: You can read all about the latest homeless count, and the different homelessness trends in regions throughout Metro Vancouver.

VANCOUVER NUMBERS

⛽ 10 cents: The amount the price of gas increased on Thursday, to an average of 184.9 cents. This volatility is expected to last another month according to experts. [CTV]

💰 41st: Vancouver’s ranking in the cities with the most people who have a net worth of at least $100 million. Toronto placed 19th. [CityNews]

🏒 8-1: The score of Vancouver’s first regular season game against Edmonton, with Brock Boeser scoring four goals. Well done! [Vancouver Canucks]

📺 $3.4 billion: How much film and TV production fell in Vancouver in 2022 during the labour strike. It’s also not looking good as talks between the actors and studios broke down after the union accused the studios of bullying tactics. [Hollywood Reporter]s

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HOUSING

Affordability crisis: A look at renting

A news story today on the challenges of living alone in Vancouver, and a poll on low-income residents, illustrates the challenges facing the most precarious people in the city when it comes to renting.

The story: An opinion piece in the Province breaks down the costs of living as a single person in an apartment — on average it could cost someone $3,299 per month. So rather than do this, many people choose to live together with others to save money. While not necessarily a huge problem, it illustrates how for many, the dream of building one’s own life in the city is impossible.

A double whammy: Those who partner with someone else to share rent face a big problem — a shared tenancy agreement between multiple people means that landlords can raise rents if one person on the lease decides to leave, according to the Tyee. So even if someone tries to save money by bunking up, they face increased precarity if one person needs to move out.

• Zoom in: As of October, people in Metro Vancouver spend more than half their income on rent, which is well above the 30 percent target, according to Urbanized.

The poll: Data from a recent poll by Abacus Data showed that 94 percent of low-income renters are concerned about the increasing costs of rent, and 86 percent are worried about the lack of available homes. A large number, 65 percent, say it’s gotten harder recently to find an affordable rental to live in.

Paying for rental increases is also a challenge. Each province has different rules about how much you can raise rents. But in total, 75 percent of low-income renters across Canada are concerned about paying for a rent hike.

• Most are very supportive of government-supplied affordable housing, with 78 percent saying it’s a good idea to improve the rental market.

What it means: We may get caught up in the price of purchasing a home, but one thing we forget is the downstream effects. Higher rents, more precarity, changing living situations for young and old — high housing prices impact all of that. Economic mobility, the ability to move around to improve one’s economic condition such as finding a new job, is all but impossible if people cannot afford to move to a place that pays better.

THE AGENDA

👮 Vancouver police are investigating a series of incidents at Israeli rallies on Monday, including threats made against participants. [National Post]

🌧️ It’s about to return to normal weather in Vancouver, and by that, we mean rain. A storm off the coast will bring rain starting this Friday. [TriCity News]

🚽 Enough is enough… For porta potties, that is. BC’s construction industry wants the provincial government to mandate flush toilets at job locations. Many have no hand washing stations and are quite dirty according to the BC Building and Construction Trades Council. [CityNews]

✅ It’s been almost a year since ABC won the municipal election. So, have they kept their promises? Yes, when it comes to hiring police and mental health care workers, while permitting delays and housing progress is lacking. You can read it all here. [Business in Vancouver]

🏢 Atira Women’s Resource Society is selling off its office space, and is working to fix ongoing problems, the interim CEO Catherine Roome said. [The Tyee]

🏫 The School Streets Pilot at Lord Robert Elementary School, which closed down the road in front of the school for 30-45 minutes in the morning and afternoon to allow children to play and make pickup easier, has shut down. [Vancity Lookout]

💰️ According to an analysis by The Tyee, BC landlords who complain about rent caps are still generating a healthy profit, even as many complain about those rent caps. [The Tyee]

CITY HALL

(Members-only) Sim touts new bold housing plan, but just how bold is it?

On Wednesday, Mayor Ken Sim announced what he called a “bold” set of plans to deal with the housing crisis. But is that actually the case?

What happened: Sim announced that his ABC party would bring forth a number of motions in the coming months to deal with the housing crisis.

The key policy is around implementing 26 new Village Areas. These are defined as clusters of townhouses, multiplexes and mixed-use low-rise buildings in different areas throughout the city, according to Urbanized. The two other high-impact policies are harmonizing building codes with the BC Building Code and looking at height restrictions that are limited by the potential shadow impact on parks and plazas. You can read the rest here.

Read the entire story

WEEKEND GUIDE

Vancouver Improv Festival | The Cultch in East Vancouver & Tightrope Theatre | Now until Sunday | Spontaneity, that’s what it’s about. If you love laughing, you’ll love this event | Tickets

North Shore Art Crawl | Multiple locations | Today-Sunday | Local galleries, community centres and art schools show off local artists' work including textiles, jewellery, graphic design and more | Free

Pumpkins After Dark | 6100 Boundary Rd. | Now until Sunday, until Oct. 31 | Featuring over 10,000 hand-crafted pumpkins, this family fun event isn’t to be missed | Tickets $18.95

Vancouver Outdoor Arts Festival | Roundhouse Community Arts & Recreation Centre | Now until Tuesday, 12 pm-8 pm | Visual and performing artists, focusing on the theme of outsiders, with dance, theatre and other performances | More info

New West Cultural Crawl | Various locations | This Saturday and Sunday, 11 am-5 pm | Check out all the studios and art New West has to offer | Free

Spooky Pop Up - a Halloween Market | Robson Square | This Saturday, 11 am-5 pm | Halloween-inspired shopping, with handmade jewellery, candles, snacks, decor and more | Free

Slow Beer: The Bottle Episode | Dageraad Brewing | This Saturday, 1 pm-5 pm | Discover rare and complex beers in a small setting, along with burgers from Between 2 Buns | Tickets $65

Vancouver Horror Show | Scotiabank Theatre | Today until Sunday | Featuring six films and 41 short films, with unique and scary movies you can’t see anywhere else | Tickets starting at $37.50

West End Farmers Market | 1100 Comox St. | Saturdays, 9 am-2 pm | Over 30 different farms and producers, with food and coffee trucks | Free

UBC Apple Festival | UBC Botanical Garden | This Saturday and Sunday | Learn about apples, apple display, a food fair, and entertainment | Tickets $10

The Buffy Musical | Pacific Cinematheque | Sunday, 12 pm | Sing along with your favourite characters | Tickets $20

Kitsilano Farmers Market | Kitsilano Community Centre | Sundays, 10 am-2 pm | More than 50 different farm and producers selling their goods, pickup everything you need for dinner | Free

COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHTS

• Mah Milk Bar is now open at 1502 Victoria Dr. [Scout]

• Geopolitics in <5 minutes? Get International Intrigue, the free global briefing crafted by former diplomats.*

• If you’re craving German Doner, the only best place to get it is German Doner Kebab in Surrey. [Reddit]

• Congrats to Vancouver’s Pieter Cullis, who was named to the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame for his work on the mRNA vaccine. [Business in Vancouver]

• And congrats to YouTuber and city affairs videographer Uytae Lee, who was named to the board of commissioners who oversee BC Housing (we’ve featured a few of his videos). [Urbanized]

• Reddit users recommend Ramengers/Smoking Pig, Akedo Showten and Kintaro for those of you just getting into ramen. [Reddit]

• Au Comptoir has opened up a second location, Au Petite Comptoir, at 1471 Continental St. [Scout]

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HISTORY

I’m a big fan of old photos, and this one of English Bay in the 1940s really shows how the area has changed.

GAME TIME

Congrats to Judy, who guessed Wednesday’s Vancouver Guesser was Bao Bei!

Today’s Vancouver Wordle is easy if you read the newsletter. Can you guess what it is? Play now.

MEMBERS-ONLY STORIES

These deep-dives are available to Insider members, who help fund our local journalism and keep these newsletters going.

• Popular school bike program gets the axe

• Sim touts new bold housing plan, but just how bold is it?

• What two complaints by the mayor can tell us about the next municipal election

• Three interesting trends from the Union of BC Municipalities convention

• A stairway to food heaven at Richmond Public Market

• Why Vancouver’s chief planner is out

• This hidden gem Vietnamese restaurant is doing noodle soup right

• Does a new communications director herald a change at city hall?