Due to the completion of the Site C hydro project there are accommodations and facilities available for repurposing that is the size of a small town.
And it is all paid for and built as part of the Site C Project. It is ready to go.
Rather than B.C. Hydro selling the assets of this community, why not repurpose these buildings and provide housing and support for more than 1,500 unhoused individuals in modern accommodations with meal services, gyms, and wrap-around health-care supports?
If the location near Fort St. John is not appropriate, the pre-fab buildings could be relocated to other sites owned by health authorities, government, or on Crown lands.
This could be a rapid response to housing and support needs for hundreds of individuals living on the streets of cities like Nanaimo, Victoria, Abbotsford and Prince George, to name a few.
Maybe an opportunity for the provincial government to demonstrate the value of Bill 14/15 when things need to happen fast.
I hope the B.C. government and their B.C. Hydro seize this opportunity and demonstrate they have the talent to create a home and care centre for more than 1,000 of our most vulnerable citizens.
And it could be operating within a year. It will save lives, stop harm, and help bring order back to many cities and towns in British Columbia.
Ian Munroe
Victoria
I want to make a distinction between shelter and housing. Anything from a pod up to a bachelor’s unit should be considered shelter.
A one-bedroom or more should be considered housing.
Everyone should be entitled to at least a pod, and if they can not afford it one should be provided for them.
Perhaps the government should build and sell bachelors units at cost, not for profit. If a bachelor owner wants to sell and move out they should not be allowed to sell for more than they paid.
The idea here is to get people off the rent treadmill.
Sean Murray
Victoria
It’s not just the shortage of health care workers such as doctors, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, nurses, practical nurses and so on.
It’s not just the shortage of family doctors. It’s not just the egregiously long waits for diagnosis and treatment. It’s not just the long long waits in emergency rooms.
It’s the disconnect. We have a government that is simply disconnected.
I’m betting most, if not all, our elected officials have a doctor and get the care they need.
They are completely disconnected from the needs of their constituents. They are disconnected from us.
What will it take to shake them from their lofty perches so they can see us? The people who elected them.
Susan Worrall
Chemainus
Re: “A lesson in the power of buying local,” commentary, July 8.
David Lowther’s enjoyable commentary on Cecil (W.A.C.) Bennett mentioned Johnny’s Cafe, which brought back great memories for one newly arrived immigrant from the early 1970s.
A three-course dinner at Johnny’s was a must. Homemade soup, liver and onions with gravy and red Jello. Couldn’t be beat for $3.95.
Christopher Causton
Victoria
A recent letter suggested that the 2021 heat dome was such a rare event that it would not occur again for centuries.
The World Weather Attribution group, in its 2021 press release “Western North American extreme heat virtually impossible without human-caused climate change,” suggested an anticipated rate of occurrence of one in 1,000 years given current climate conditions.
However, it pointed out that, as the climate changes, extreme events will become much more frequent: “Looking into the future, in a world with 2 C of global warming (0.8 C warmer than today which at current emission levels would be reached as early as the 2040s)… an event like this — currently estimated to occur only once every thousand years, would occur roughly every 5 to 10 years in that future world with 2 C of global warming.”
A 2022 study by Vikki Thompson and others in the journal Science Advances used a different methodology but found similar results. They state that “by 2080 … such an event would have a 1-in-6 chance of occurring each year” and that “extremes appear to increase in line with changes to the mean state of the distribution of the climate.”
Unfortunately, given society’s lack of action on climate change, scientists estimate that extreme heat events similar to the 2021 heat dome could occur every decade, or more frequently, within the next 20 to 55 years.
Aidan Byrne
Victoria
May I suggest that we review the use of fireworks?
And by this I do not propose that we legislate against a minority, but that we simply take a look at what damage fireworks are causing.
They cause damage to humans who have no choice but to live with the terrifying noise and, equally as important, damage to our pets or wildlife.
Could we not replace major events with a brilliant laser show?
It would be so beautiful, clean and not offensive.
Leonhard Braunizer
Brentwood Bay
Re: “Without more trees, B.C.’s next heat dome could be even deadlier,” comment, July 2.
Many thanks to Dr. Bethany Ricker, David Quigg and Dr. Melissa Lem for pointing out in their op-ed the reality that “climate safety and housing need not be at odds. In fact, they must go hand in hand.”
We especially need more trees and urban greenspace “in equity-deserving neighbourhoods where tree canopy is sparse” — like downtown, Harris Green and areas to the north.
The city is working on these areas, with requirements for new buildings to protect and add trees.
City crews are adding new trees where we build bike-and-roll lanes and improve streets (e.g. Blanshard Street most recently).
Between 2013 and 2023, our urban tree canopy grew by the equivalent of 100 soccer fields, while we added more than 8,000 net new homes (almost entirely multifamily buildings).
We have much more to do. As the authors note, we need communities “that are affordable, climate-resilient and safe for all.”
And we know from experience that it’s possible.
Dave Thompson
Councillor
City of Victoria
I think the poor decision to build four new vessels in China springs directly from the shortsightedness of the previous B.C. Liberal government to “privatize” B.C. Ferries.
When the Gordon Campbell Liberals created this new entity, in an attempt to sell British Columbians the myth that B.C. Ferries would now be “run more like an efficient business,” it was really just a cynical effort to balance the provincial budget by taking the debts of B.C. Ferries off the books.
Now, the current board appears to be content to run its “business” in a manner that fits only its narrow bottom line, rather than as the vital public service that it truly is.
Rather than considering important public interest issues such as supporting local industry and workers, it opts to let a huge contract to the heavily subsidized Chinese government shipbuilding industry.
It is clear that this current board of directors could not give one whit for the greater needs of B.C. or that the Chinese government is prosecuting an aggressive tariff war on Canada.
While it might be true that there were no Canadian bidders for this project, efforts have to be made to create an environment where they can realistically do so. This can include creative partnerships between European shipyards with domestic shipyards in the shorter term and providing incentives for our Canadian industry in the same way that international competitors are, so that a fair playing field can be established.
The government should take immediate legislative steps to reform the operating model for B.C. Ferries, thereby putting the interests of British Columbians first.
Dan Rowe
Sidney
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