Canada announces support for rapid housing in Vancouver

Vancouver, British Columbia, March 10, 2022

Everyone in Canada deserves a safe and affordable place to call home. The COVID-19 crisis has made it clear that affordable housing is key to Canada’s recovery, including in Vancouver.

Today, the Honourable Hedy Fry, Member of Parliament for Vancouver Centre, on behalf of the Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion, alongside, His Worship Kennedy Stewart, Mayor of Vancouver, and Darrell Burnham, CEO of Coast Mental Health, announced the grand opening of Burnham Place, a 68-unit housing development operated by Coast Mental Health that will provide homes to vulnerable populations interested in recovery.

Government of Canada provided the City of Vancouver $51.5 million in federal funding during the first round of the Major Cities Stream of the Rapid Housing Initiative and $30 million of this funding was used for this project.

For tenants choosing to live at Burnham Place, they will be provided 24-hours-a-day/7-days-a-week supports that include medication administration, recovery planning, life skills training, and education and employment services. Tenants will also have access to a meal program and laundry services at this facility.

Coast’s membership-run clubhouse across the street will offer tenants recreational activities, meals and education programming, as well as employment opportunities through two social enterprises: The Street Clean Team and Landscaping With Heart.

New investments under the Rapid Housing Initiative will create thousands of good jobs in the housing and construction sector, grow the middle class, and build back stronger communities while getting us closer to our goal of eliminating chronic homelessness in Canada.

Quotes:

“Everyone deserves a safe and affordable place to call home. Through the Rapid Housing Initiative, our government is quickly providing new affordable housing units for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness across Canada, including these 68 new units in Vancouver to keep them safe. This is just one of the many ways our National Housing Strategy continues to ensure no one is left behind.”
— The Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion

“Every Canadian deserves a safe and affordable place to call home. Today's announcement marks the grand opening of Burnham Place and this bring us one step closer in meeting the urgent need for housing in Vancouver. This investment made through the Rapid Housing Initiative is providing a chance for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness to get back onto their feet and work to bring positive change to the local community. This is our National Housing Strategy in action.”
— The Honourable Hedy Fry, Member of Parliament for Vancouver Centre

“We know that mental health supports and round the clock care can not only help people build healthier lives, it also helps build healthier communities. These 68 new homes will help fight homelessness and make our city stronger and healthier moving forward.”
— His Worship Kennedy Stewart, Mayor of Vancouver

“Our goal is to provide people who are at risk of homelessness or experiencing homelessness with permanent housing that includes mental health supports. Supported housing offers people a long-term opportunity to create stability in their lives. When housed permanently, people feel secure and stable, which is vital for their recovery.”
— Tracy Rapanos, Director of Community Services, Coast Mental Health

Quick facts:

The building is named Burnham Place, in celebration of Darrell Burnham, the chief executive officer at Coast Mental Health, who is also celebrating 35 years of community service as of June 2022 and is set to retire by the end of the year.
The Government of Canada acknowledges that this project is located on the unceded territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and Sel̓íl̓witulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.
The RHI is a $2.5 billion program creating over 10,000 new homes to help address urgent housing needs of vulnerable Canadians, especially in the context of COVID-19, through the rapid construction of affordable housing.
The RHI has received significant interest from Indigenous groups, which resulted in over 40% of all units created under the program to be targeted to Indigenous peoples.
Units are intended to be constructed within 12 months of when funding is provided to program applicants (with some exceptions), with units in the North and in special access communities intended to be constructed within 18 months.
Close to 33 per cent of the Rapid Housing Initiative funding under round two will go towards women-focused housing projects with units constructed within 12 months of when funding is provided to program applicants.
The RHI takes a human rights-based approach to housing, serving people experiencing or at risk of homelessness and others who are among the most vulnerable, including: women and children fleeing domestic violence, seniors, young adults, Indigenous peoples, people with disabilities, people dealing with mental health and addiction issues, veterans, LGBTQ2+, racialized groups, Black Canadians, and recent immigrants or refugees.
Canada's National Housing Strategy (NHS) is a 10-year, $72 billion plan that will give more Canadians a place to call home.

Associated links:

As Canada’s authority on housing, CMHC contributes to the stability of the housing market and financial system, provides support for Canadians in housing need, and offers unbiased housing research and advice to all levels of Canadian government, consumers and the housing industry. CMHC’s aim is that by 2030, everyone in Canada has a home they can afford, and that meets their needs. For more information, follow us on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn and Facebook.

To find out more about these projects and other supportive housing initiatives, visit : vancouver.ca/supportive-housing.

Coast Mental Health has been working to support people in the Vancouver community for almost 50 years. Since its inception in 1972, Coast has maintained a leadership role in building vital community-based supports and programming to support people with mental illness and substance use disorders. For more information on their services and programming, please visit their website at: www.coastmentalhealth.com.

For information on this release:

Arevig Afarian
Office of the Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion
Arevig.Afarian@infc.gc.ca

Media Relations
Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation
media@cmhc-schl.gc.ca

Susan Hancock
Senior Manager, Communications & Community Development
Coast Mental Health
Cell.: 604-230-2267
Susan.hancock@coastmentalhealth.com