DVBA’s Executive Director Jeff Bray Appointed Co-Chair of Coalition to End Homelessness

Today at its Annual General Meeting the Greater Victoria Coalition to End Homelessness will appoint Jeff Bray, Executive Director of the Downtown Victoria Business Association as the board’s Community Co-Chair. Bray will replace outgoing Co-Chair Ian Batey who has served a three-year term in the role.

“I want to thank Ian for his three years of dedicated service to our community. And I’d like to welcome Jeff aboard,” said Coalition Co-Chair Mayor Lisa Helps. “It’s terrific to have such a community-minded business leader to co-lead the Coalition for the next three years.”

Bray has served as the Chair of the Community Engagement and Communications Committee for the past two years and will be now be stepping into a larger leadership role with the Coalition.

“It was an honour to be approached and I look forward to serving in this role,” said Bray. “Homelessness is something that affects us all from people sheltering in doorways to the small business owner coming through that same doorway in the morning. The Coalition is doing a good job with proactive solutions and I’m happy to take more of a leadership role in the organization.”

Although there are many housing units renting at $375 per month under construction in the region through the Regional Housing First Program and other BC Housing funded programs, they are not built yet; many of the region’s most marginalized residents are still sheltering out of doors. The Coalition is working in a bottom-up, grassroots way to address homelessness and develops an annual Community Plan to ensure the funding available meets the greatest needs in the community.

“Having Jeff join our board will keep us well-connected with the business community so we can continue to address the issue of homelessness together,” said Kelly Roth, Coalition Executive Director. “When it comes to solving homelessness there is not ‘us and them’; we’re all it in together and Jeff understands this.”

Since its inception, the Greater Victoria Coalition to End Homelessness has been co-chaired by the Mayor of Victoria and a leader from the business community.

The Coalition’s AGM will be held today from 12-1:30 at the Mary Winnspear Centre in Sidney.

 

Esquimalt Town Hall Presentation: Lisa Crossman

On Saturday, February 23, Member of Parliament Randall Garrison and Member of the Legislative Assembly Mitzi Dean co-hosted a town hall on housing affordability and homelessness in Esquimalt and the Western Communities. As part of the panel discussion, Lisa Crossman, Co-Chair of the Coalition’s People With Lived Experience team and Indigenous Peer Housing Supporter, gave the following presentation. Our thanks to Lisa for her leadership and courage in turning her lived experience into an asset that serves others.

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Homelessness solutions don’t happen overnight

Letter to the editor of the Victoria Times Colonist by our Executive Director, Don Elliott.

January 7, 2017

Re: “Victoria eyes deadline slip in major goals,” Jan. 5.

Homelessness is a complex issue, one that requires a sensitive, nuanced and focused response. A piece of this is being addressed through a coalition of 40-plus stakeholder organizations working to connect individuals experiencing significant levels of marginalization to housing and support services by April 2017.

The remaining individuals experiencing chronic homelessness are expected to be connected to housing and support services options if they choose by 2021. The kind of system response necessary to connect individuals experiencing chronic homelessness to the right combination of housing options and support services does not happen overnight.

In May 2016, the B.C. Housing Management Commission and the Capital Regional District each agreed to contribute $30 million in funding, along with Island Health committing to align its existing mental-health and substance services with the new housing opportunities. This significant investment is expected to add at least 268 new units of housing with rent levels set at the provincial shelter rate.

These units will work in conjunction with existing housing and support services to begin to provide individuals experiencing chronic homelessness with greater housing choice and support service options.

These focused, collaborative, community-wide initiatives signal a step forward in working to address some of the housing and support service needs of the most vulnerable members of the community.