Breaking More New Ground

“Sometimes places just feel right and in so many ways Vancouver feels right.” So said Wayne Hemingway in his article for The Independent newspaper, and he was spot-on. He liked “the serendipity that enthusiastic and knowledgeable independent store owners bring to the shopping experience…This is a wealthy city that enjoys thrift but is not afraid to celebrate high quality architecture and public space”. Perhaps no wonder that social enterprise can take off in a place like this.

I loved the relaxed feel of the city and felt very much at home. I managed to walk to Stanley Park on a bright, crisply cold day and it was brilliant. I walked round the sea wall with a backdrop of snow-capped mountains every which way you looked. There were impressive totem poles, the statue of the lady in a wet suit, raccoons at Beaver Lake, more joggers than you could shake a stick at. Most of all I’ll remember how good it made me feel.

There was a different side to the city, which I found thanks to an impromptu visit arranged for three of us – Michael Lennon, Steve Pomeroy and myself. We went to 25 Hastings Street East, which was a privately owned hotel, I suppose. It’s been run for six years by the Community Builders Benevolent Group . Some $2m have been invested to date. There was a palpable sense of having entered a different sort of area when we arrived by yellow taxi – in fact, I had to check that it wasn’t Robert De Niro driving. Even at late morning there were plenty of people still lying out on the pavements. The only day I wore a tie…I couldn’t have looked more incongruous if I’d tried. Still, I thought…I was with a bloke from Glasgow.

The man in charge there is Gordon Wiebe, who was really helpful and gave us an insight into the people and the place. Residents pay $375 a month for 174 rooms across three buildings. The project brings in annual income of around $400K – enough to meet all basic costs without any grant support. It’s a lean operation but it succeeds because it has a benevolent owner, innovative social services and it’s run by agenda-free altruists. There are 30 staff, 20 of whom arrived as residents and who still live there.

It also succeeds because residents are empowered by a ‘bottom-up’ structure, where residents help residents. Gordon described their ethos as one where people ‘default to wellness’ rather than to problems. They strive to re-establish concepts of ‘community’ and ‘family’ with safety an important factor. They are pursuing a direction that appeared similar to a co-operative and I wish them well, they’re doing a great job.

Back to the Congress…Judy Rebik is one of Canada’s best known political commentators and delivered a keynote address on ‘Mobilizing for Change: Getting Housing back on the Agenda’. She spoke passionately and intelligently about reclaiming democracy, expressing concern that her Government continues to ignore the weight of public opinion. Judy used the problems of the mortgage position in the USA to show that ‘market fundamentalism’ doesn’t work, and that right now it’s like the train driver that’s died with his foot on the accelerator. Government intervention is essential.

She called for the establishment to let go of control and to trust people. ‘Network politics’ is the solution with the role of the internet critical. As politicians continue to rely on sound bites, people are showing themselves willing to look for more depth through the web. Judy felt that this was a significant breakthrough by the Barack Obama team, using the immediacy of the internet to get the right messages out to people. An inspiring session and one of my congress highlights.

The ‘cross-country check-up’ allowed people from a range of organizations and geographical locations to talk about current critical issues and new directions. The response came from someone familiar to us in the UK, Duncan Maclennan, who is Professor of Urban Economics and Policy at the University of Ottawa.

My main contribution came in an international panel session: ‘Building a modern housing policy for Canada in the age of global mobility’. I was privileged to share a platform with Saul Ramirez, Executive Director of the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials from Washington DC; Michael Lennon, Chief Executive of Housing Choices Australia and formerly of GHA in Scotland; and Derek Ballantyne, Chief Executive of Toronto Community Housing Corporation. We were kept in order by Sharon Chisholm of the Canadian Housing and Renewal Association (CHRA).

In both USA and Canada, the challenge is operationally doing more with less but strategically getting housing higher on the agenda. In Australia, there seems more optimism following their change of government with the introduction of a Federal Minister for Housing and the prospect of a new housing strategy to come. One of the interesting themes that Michael picked up was the watershed moment when the new PM apologized to the indigenous population, something that struck a real chord with many Canadians. Indeed, Canada is a diverse nation with over 500 minorities according to a TV report aired during my stay.

The Q and A session that followed was enthusiastic and many complained that the session should have been longer, always a good sign. It was left to Derek to pull things together from a Canadian perspective and to look at the potential for a pan-Canadian set of housing objectives.

I also enjoyed a tour that took in a visit to Fraser Street to see a newly opened development of 30 studio apartments. Operated by RainCity Housing and Care Society, they provide homes and support for individuals with mental illness who are in recovery from an addiction. It was interesting to hear how they handled community opposition – evidently ‘nimbyism’ is a worldwide movement. Funding comes from a range of partners and the scheme has been successfully integrated to the extent that residents now take part in a number of local community activities.

The trip went on to Little Mountain, British Columbia’s largest social housing redevelopment site. The process has just begun, with great expectations of what will be a public / private partnership. It’s worth noting that this site is Vancouver’s oldest social housing site, having been initially built in the early 1950’s. It will be interesting to see the finished site, going from an estate of traditional houses with fantastic space around them to a very high density model with open space at a premium.

I’ve previously mentioned the social enterprise work going on in Canada and a number of delegates to the Congress told me they are hoping to attend the Social Enterprise World Forum, which is being held in Edinburgh from 2-5 September this year. Perhaps this is something we at CIH should have a look at too. You can find the details here.

Of course, no conference would be complete without its social events and the Congress was no exception. There was a 40th birthday celebration with a chance to reflect on achievements and an invitation to ‘roast or toast’. The International Dinner at Pastis French restaurant was a great night: our friend Claude Roy spoke about the great links that CHRA have around the world and the presentation of their International Award to a Kenyan lady illustrated the type of support they continue to provide.

A Gala Dinner was held at Westis Hotel, followed by The EPICS – a Canadian band from the sixties doing a soul and Motown review. They were almost as good as ‘The Honky Tonk Angels’, a new vocal group who made a sensational debut at Cin Cin’s on the last night…don’t ask.

Some of my colleagues will have the chance to see for themselves what’s going on in Canada at the next Tri-Country Conference, which takes place in Toronto in October. It’s worth it. International exchanges like this throw up so much contrast and provide a real learning opportunity. I’m very grateful to the CHRA for looking after me so well, and especially to Sharon and Duncan – see you soon I hope!