Vernon City Council at the regular meeting Monday, March 24 (photo by Liam Verster / Vernon Matters)

By Liam Verster

Service Review Proposal

Vernon not pursuing supportive housing impact study

Mar 25, 2025 | 6:00 AM

A proposal to review the impacts supportive housing and social programs have on neighbouring businesses and residents will not go ahead, though did spark a lively debate in the council chambers.

At the regular council meeting Monday, March 24, Coun. Kari Gares put forward a Notice of Motion that asked staff to provide a cost estimate and identify a funding source for an independent, third-party impact assessment of existing supportive housing and barrier free projects within the downtown core. This would involve analyzing crime rates, emergency service demands, business viability, housing market effects, neighbourhood impacts, community feedback, and the effectiveness of existing supportive housing models.

“I want to make this very clear, this is not an all-or-nothing proposition, we can support initiatives that provide essential services to those in need while also acknowledging the challenges that neighbourhoods may face when these supports are introduced, especially when they’re introduced in a very small radius which is typically what ends up happening,” Gares said at Monday’s meeting.

“The motion is not a criticism of the important work we’ve accomplished so far, I will be the first person to say I’ve supported every project that has come forward here because they are essential services, they are required, and we see the benefits of that. But, it serves as a reminder that our responsibility, as elected officials, is to consider also those broader impacts and seek solutions that enhance the community for everyone, regardless of their economic circumstances.

“This impact assessment study is just to get a full, in-depth knowledge of what is happening within those corresponding neighbourhoods that have these supportive housing projects, and I want to be very clear, I’m not talking about affordable housing projects, I’m talking about very precise supportive housing projects that do house our most vulnerable population.”

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Gares noted supportive housing facilities are built close to one another as well as close to agencies that provide mental health, addiction, and other services, and there have been reports of residents and businesses “dealing with the ramifications” of the concentration of the residents and individuals seeking support services. She believed supporting housing should be reviewed “so we have something that is tangible, so when we’re sitting at the table with upper levels of government we have something solid to say ‘these are the issues, how do we work collaboratively to figure it out so we are giving the supports to our most vulnerable individuals, but we’re also recognizing the needs of those that live within those areas and the [nearby] businesses?'”

The motion sparked a lengthy debate in the council chambers, where most were opposed to the idea.

Councillor Kelly Fehr opened the debate by stating “barrier free projects” was a “nonsensical term” as it’s “not used in housing or social service sectors, or contracts,” adding all housing and programs, including supportive housing, have some form of barrier, such as behaviour, income, or demographic requirements. Fehr went on to say doing this study would not benefit the Vernon taxpayer, as data on these issues can already be found elsewhere.

“The province of B.C. has a research centre that has plenty of data online regarding all aspects of housing, and not just research done by B.C. Housing but also collected throughout the province, and actually throughout the world, around different forms of non-market housing on property values as well,” Fehr said Monday.

“The Vernon taxpayer could pay for our own impact assessment that could evaluate the social and economic impacts of non-market housing, or, more specifically, supportive housing in Vernon. What that study would likely tell us is lower-income neighbourhoods have higher levels of behavioural challenges and lower levels of positive health outcomes.”

Fehr went on to say it would be fiscally irresponsible to go ahead with the study, and instead suggested council “demonstrate leadership” by working with staff and partners to identify and secure properties in Vernon where non-market housing, including supportive housing, could be established, so they are not all concentrated in one area.

Fehr also recommended that a strategy be developed to increase participation in the RCMP and Community Safety Volunteer programs, which was suggested as part of the Community Safety Strategic Plan but not yet actioned.

He added having no supportive housing would mean more unhoused people in Vernon putting more pressure on residents and businesses.

Coun. Brian Quiring noted the motion should have been worded as “low-barrier” and not “barrier free,” adding the review will require numerous studies over multiple years to look into each of them fully. He also said the city was actively pursuing more funding from B.C. Housing for these types of projects, and calling for an assessment could cause those applications to be denied.

Coun. Brian Guy said there was already enough information to guide the city in dealing with localized behavioural concerns, such as police and bylaw reports, and saying the city should act to address those issues. However, he did not belive another study was necessary, instead saying it could cause further delays rather than immediate action.

Mayor Victor Cumming weighed in, saying there may be people associating people who live in supportive housing with criminal activity, drug use, or other activities, but there’s little evidence from RCMP, bylaw and social services to connect those individuals with those issues. He also stated people who have accessed supportive housing were far more likely to be successful in life than those who are unhoused. The mayor also said a study of this nature would be expensive and take a long time, and the city should instead be taking action to address concerns raised by the public.

Coun. Akbal Mund also noted that the unhoused, not those in supportive housing, were a major cause for concern with the public, and suggested some provincial funding be allocated to addressing those individuals. He also stated that neither of those groups are responsible for crimes in Vernon, saying those are committed by criminals who come into town.

Gares pushed back against some of the statements, saying the residents were likely not the ones causing the issues, though the concentration of services and supportive housing could attract individuals who then cause the issues. She also said that studies by other agencies may only give a partial picture of the current situation; that there could be a better strategy for where to place these housing types; that these are ongoing issues; and there were public concerns involving the services and the people they serve.

The rest of council did agree that the concerns raised by citizens need to be addressed, but the motion to have staff find a third-party to do the assessment was defeated. Gares was the only vote in favour.

Coun. Teresa Durning was not present at Monday’s meeting.