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- Goal for VPD mental health nurses reduced, still unfilled
Goal for VPD mental health nurses reduced, still unfilled
They've now hired 35, still not meeting their goal, which has been reduced again to 55 nurses

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Good morning!
We’re approaching the end of spooky season, and I think I could be doing more to celebrate it. I’ve rewatched the Haunting of Bly Manor — not as good, in my opinion, as The Haunting of Hill House series, but still, as one character would put it, perfectly splendid — and I’ve been enjoying the new podcast series Woodbine. (Highly recommend to anyone who listened to and enjoyed Parkdale Haunt!)
That said, I’ll be checking out the Vancouver Horror Show screening of Indigenous horror shorts this weekend, which I’m really excited for, and I may be checking something out at the Rio next week. Otherwise, I’ll be checking Netflix et al for anything else that can feed the Halloween itch before the season is over.
Anyway, today, we’ve got a report at city hall about progress hiring 100 58 55 mental health nurses to work with the VPD, and some other business at city hall around ending rezoning for social and co-op housing.
PS - If you find this newsletter valuable, please consider forwarding it to your friends. New to the Lookout? Sign-up for free.
WEATHER
Friday: 12 🌡️ 8 | ⛅️
Saturday: 13 🌡️ 10 | 🌧️
Sunday: 13 🌡️ 9 | 🌧️
Monday: 11 🌡️ 5 | 🌦️
VPD
Goal for mental health nurses lower, still unfilled
What happened: A program originally aiming to hire 100 nurses to work with the Vancouver Police Department is still struggling to reach its targets — even as those targets have nearly halved in the two years since ABC campaigned on it in its run for city council.
The program: The urgent mental health and substance use enhancements framework has four programs, each with varying levels of triage. The highest-risk calls will still be a 911 patrol response, while Car 87/88 involves calls that require a clinical assessment with a potential risk requiring police support, including potential apprehension.
At the bottom of the risk levels are the mobile crisis de-escalation team (MoDe), and the Indigenous crisis response team, which requires clinical assessment but no police support. There are also two liaison nurse positions for the operations centre. Between the four programs, officials said in a report to city council that 35 full-time equivalent positions have been filled.
Background: Mayor Ken Sim and his slate, ABC, took a large majority on city council in October 2022 with its keystone campaign promise of hiring 100 cops and 100 nurses to address mental health crises and substance use issues in the city. It came amid a wave of discourse pushing back against life-saving policies, like safe supply, and against what political actors on the right call soft-on-crime policies.
By September last year, VPD Chief Adam Palmer announced that the department had managed to hire its 100 police officers, according to The Tyee, but only 9.5 full-time equivalent positions had been hired for mental health support. The Tyee also reported that the goal had shrunk to just 58 mental health workers and had shifted to a mix of nurses, social workers, liaison and peer workers and others.
More hires, lower goal: In the year since then, the goal has shrunk even more, albeit only slightly, with the aim not to hire 55 full-time equivalent (FTE) positions. The loss of three positions through that grant comes from the Indigenous crisis response team, according to a report to city council.
The Indigenous team was originally intended to have 12 FTE positions, but that was reduced to nine “to provide more appropriately specialized services based on program modelling and assessed need.”
In all, 35 FTEs have been hired in the four programs, or about 64% of the 55 FTE goal. Besides the Indigenous team, all 10 Car 87/88 positions have been filled, while 14 MoDe positions have been hired, with a further 18 still yet to be filled.
Budget implications: The original budget for 2023 largely went unspent — just $618,000, with $2.18 million carrying over into this year. That was supplemented with a $4.67-million grant, for a total of $6.85 million budgeted for this year. While the VPD overall is millions of dollars over budget, according to Global, this program has spent less than a third ($2.17 million) of its budget.
The 2024 budget for this program included $6.19 million for staffing salaries and benefits. As of mid-August, the program has spent $1.99 million on staffing.
The spending for the remaining three-and-a-half months of the year is expected to be higher due to increased staffing. Staff didn’t make any asks of council this week, but anticipate making a funding request in the 2024 social policy grant report next month.
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VANCOUVER NUMBERS
🚨 370: The BC Coroners Service announced this many people died in August (187 deaths) and September (183) this year from unregulated drugs, bringing the year’s total to 1,749. That includes 385 in Vancouver. [BC Coroners Service]
🧱 5: The developer Grosvenor will get this many extra years — until 2033 — to fulfill its requirement to build 175 social housing units and other amenities. The developer said after taking over the Oakridge site in 2022 that it would complete the plan as agreed to by the previous developer, but now says the whole project is behind schedule. [CBC]
🙋♀️ 52%: While we’re still waiting on final results, women are elected or leading in this percentage of all ridings (48 of 93), which could make BC the first province with more than half of all elected representatives being women. NDP women outnumber men 2:1, while the inverse is true for the Conservatives, and both Greens are men. [Vancouver Sun]
CITY HALL
What went down at city hall this week
What happened: It was a contentious week at council, with a number of policies signalling deep divisions between the mayor’s ABC Party, plus some less-than-usual language. We break it all down below.
Housing expansion: City council voted unanimously — with Sarah Kirby-Yung abstaining and Christine Boyle absent — to work with faith-based organizations, senior levels of government and other stakeholders to build affordable housing on properties owned by religious groups.
Opposition councillors axed: Mayor Ken Sim has excluded non-ABC councillors from his list of recommendations for appointment to the Metro Vancouver board, deputy mayor, acting mayor and duty councillor positions, despite councillors from other sides traditionally, for decades, getting those appointments. Sim told council he’s heard acting mayors attending events have garnered confusion when they aren’t ABC members. Council voted along party lines in favour of the recommendation.
Surveillance expansion: Vancouver police will now have access to the city’s 221 traffic cameras after a motion by ABC councillors Peter Meiszner and Brian Montague passed, with civil liberties groups raising concerns about privacy and enabling an “unreasonable, groundless surveillance state.” [CTV]
Intra-party conflict: City council saw a little drama on Wednesday, after ABC Coun. Sarah Kirby-Yung was waiting to speak to a motion to extend discussion on a motion beyond the usual break at 5 pm, when it was passed without debate. Kirby-Yung, apparently annoyed, stated Vancouver is “not the Wild West of fucking procedure” — much to the shock of her colleagues. [Vancouver Sun]
What Geoff thinks it means: To try and tie all these issues together is a bit challenging, but I think there are two key takeaways. When it comes to housing policy, most councillors are united in their approach, with many usually voting in favour on housing issues.
Conversely, the mayor’s decision to no longer recommend other councillors to boards shows a trend of centralizing power within the mayor’s office and his ABC party, at the expense of independent councillors. One needs to look only at how the mayor and his team dealt with the park board to understand that there is a clear trend developing.
Written by Geoff Sharpe and Dustin Godfrey.
WEEKEND GUIDE
Interstellar 10 Organ Concert Tour: Vancouver | St. Andrew's Wesley United Church | Tonight, 7:30 pm | If you liked Interstellar, the organist from the movie will share his experience working on the film, and playing his own transcription of the movie’s soundtrack | Tickets $30-$40
The Vancouver Boxing Classic | 369 Alexander St. | Oct. 26, 6:30 pm | Local amateur boxers face off | Tickets $38-$49
Thai Favourites a Cookery Class | 2665 Renfrew Street | Oct. 26, 6 pm | Learn how to make classic Thai food like pad Thai, curry and pork satay | Tickets $116
Vancouver Writers Fest 2024 | Various locations | Now until Oct. 27 | Come learn about new books, hear from authors and celebrate all things writing | Tickets
Diwali Fest 2024 | Roundhouse Community Centre | Oct. 27, 2 pm-5 pm | Come celebrate the Festival of Lights with food trucks, dance and more | Free
Jersey Boys | Stanley Alliance Industrial Stage | Until Oct. 27 | The Tony- and Grammy-winning musical is here just a few more days | Tickets $39
Vancouver Horror Show Film Festival | Various venues | This weekend and next | Two weekends of horror-fuelled cinema | Tickets $22 per screening
Canyon Frights | Capilano Suspension Bridge Park | Oct. 11-31, 10 am-8 pm | A Halloween adventure for the whole family | Tickets $72
Stanley Park Halloween Ghost Train | Pipeline Road, Stanley Park | Until Oct. 31, 6-10 pm | All aboard for this spooky ride on the Stanley Park train | Tickets $17
THE AGENDA
⛺️ The Vancouver Park Board has set Nov. 7 as the deadline for the city’s only sanctioned tent city to be vacated following a cleanup earlier this year that the board insisted at the time was not an encampment. Residents said the housing offered has been inadequate, with one saying every offer of housing has involved splitting up with her partner of 20 years. [Global]
👀 BC Conservatives Leader John Rustad was left on read by Greens Leader Sonia Furstenau, who said she answered a call from and engaged in conversation with NDP Leader David Eby. Rustad said she didn’t answer two calls and that he would try her a third time. Furstenau said she “didn’t recognize the phone number.” [CTV]
🏘️ Renters around the country, including here in Vancouver, have been facing a new tactic from landlords: defamation lawsuits. Plan A Real Estate sued West End tenants after they protested against the company over evictions in a newly bought property. [CBC]
🧑⚖️ Vancouver-based pro-Palestine group Samidoun has issued a cease and desist, threatening to sue Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre for “recklessly and maliciously” accusing it of being a terrorist entity, shortly after the organization was designated one by the federal government. [Vancouver Sun]
🧑🚒 Vancouver firefighters are getting new gear free of PFAS, chemicals that have been linked to cancer and other diseases. Firefighters face high risks of cancer, and while plunging into fires can’t be entirely controlled, the department said it can control the equipment it uses. [CTV]
🚨 A group of Black and Indigenous women are calling for a national inquiry after nine Indigenous people were killed in interactions with police over just two months, with families saying justice and accountability is elusive, and something needs to happen about police brutality. [CBC]
🦒 Jenga the giraffe at the Greater Vancouver Zoo has died. Giraffes in the wild live up to 25 years of age, and sometimes longer in captivity The zoo is investigating the cause of death. [CityNews]
PHOTO OF THE DAY
The title of this Reddit post speaks for itself: “Getting a dose of its own medicine.”
FOOD
☕️ If you love coffee and a good horchata, El Cafecito has something for you, and they’re calling it: the horchatte. It’s latte. It’s horchata. It’s creamy, smooth and sweet, and Geoff is rethinking his life after trying it. [Vancity Lookout Eats]
🥧 Geoff’s grandma passed away recently, and he remembered her with a slice of pie. She was a master of the pie in his summer days on Cortes Island, and he says Tartine Pies and Bakery was a fitting way to honour her — and while it’s no Grandma’s pie (could any ever live up to that standard?), he says she would have appreciated it nonetheless. [Vancity Lookout Eats]
🦪 It’s out with the cod, in with the music on Main Street, as seafood restaurant Smitty’s Oyster House closes to make way for Anthem Sound Lounge, described as a “neighbourhood bar and lounge” that will include DJs and live music. [Vancouver is Awesome]
🥹 A Commercial Drive staple got a sombre sendoff, with a long lineup of patrons waiting outside Joe’s Cafe Bar this week to get one last cup of coffee before it closes for good tomorrow. [Daily Hive]
COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHTS
Heritage buildings won’t be so homogenous moving forward. [Vancouver Sun]
An event in Yaletown will be showcasing the work of artists with disabilities. [CTV]
A local man has searched his neighbourhood to solve a howling mystery. [CTV]
A co-founder of the Vancouver Marathon and Vancouver Sun Run has died. [Vancouver is Awesome]
The Stanley Park seawall is set to reopen today after the big storm. [Vancouver is Awesome]
A new space in Vancouver is looking pretty cool. Also, pretty hot.
GAME TIME
Congrats to John, Tom, Barry, Alec and Stephen for correctly guessing Kingsway and Boundary in this week’s Vancouver Guesser.
For this week’s Vancouver Wordle, a word that was the source of some conflict this week. Can you guess it?
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