To anybody who has walked around downtown Vancouver, driven past highway underpasses, or read recent headlines, it comes as no surprise that the city is facing a housing emergency. There is a desperate shortage of affordable residences, homeless rates are rising, and soaring rental prices are promising to exacerbate the problem.
Therefore, last week’s decision by the Vancouver City Council to officially declare a state of emergency related to housing was a simple and necessary one. The more difficult question, however, is about what comes next.
By declaring an emergency, city leaders have paved the way for placing a property-tax levy on the November ballot with the goal of creating a fund to purchase, build, and preserve low-income rental housing. Because details of such a tax have yet to be worked out, it would not be prudent at this time to express support or opposition for the plan. But there is no doubt about it being time for the city and for citizens to work together on addressing the problem.
In this regard, Vancouver is not alone. Portland declared a housing emergency last fall, and numerous other cities throughout the country have done the same. But, in part because it is within a metropolitan area, the extent of Vancouver’s crisis is unusual for a midsized city.