Some of you may remember that I wrote an impassioned letter to the powers that be (and the powers that want to be) about the housing crisis I find myself being ground up in. I sent it to a lot of people. NDP Housing Critic David Eby sent an immediate automated reply and then I got put on his mailing list but he never actually responded (though at least I know he's fighting the good fight). Nor did Christie Clark, our premier, who, as Eby points out, is pretending to be concerned about the subject now that it is an election year (see the good fight mentioned above).
The first reply I got was from Gregor Robertson, our mayor.
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Hi Casey,
I wanted to thank you for sharing your story with me. Your experience is a stark reminder of why our work at the City is so important, and why we need to do more.
Right now, the City has more than 1,000 new affordable homes for seniors, working people, and families in the works – but we know it’s still not enough, and we’re constantly looking for new ways to get more housing built.
We also can’t solve Vancouver’s housing crisis alone. Our provincial government needs to create stronger protection for renters and much tougher penalties on landlords who break the rules. We need to strengthen our social security system with changes like higher welfare and disability rates. And most importantly, we need our provincial and federal governments to contribute their share to building more affordable housing. I’m going to keep calling on them to step up, and I hope you will too.
We have a huge task ahead of us, but I’m not backing down, and I’ll keep doing everything I can to protect renters and get more housing built.
Best wishes,
Gregor
Yesterday I received a second reply, from Jenny Kwan, who was for many years my MLA and is now my MP. This is what she said.
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Good afternoon Casey,
