WE HAVE A CRISIS HERE! 4,000 people living in SROs with terrible undignified housing and 731 homeless. And these aren’t statistics or numbers, they are human beings like you and I. You know this; so many speakers have brought this up already. That’s why we have over 6,000 signatures for our two petitions. And that’s why the plan needs to build 5,000 units of social housing on welfare/pension rate within 10 years. And the crisis is getting worse. Our neighbourhood is being invaded by gentrification – by condos, expensive housing, high-end businesses, boutique shops. As a result, we’re seeing a massive increase in land values in the DTES. We’re also seeing rents increasing beyond what low-income residents can afford – people are being displaced! This year we’ve lost another 236 low-income units – 236 more units are renting above $425/month – compare that with the $375 that low-income people like those on welfare have. $375 is not enough. Through the Plan, the City needs to strongly advocate the provincial government for higher welfare rates. How many more low-income units have to be lost and how many more people need to be displaced before you take strong action to protect them? As a result of gentrification, low-income Chinese seniors living in a non-profit housing have also faced the possibility of rent increases as high as 40%. Responding to Councillor Tang’s comment, increasing the SAFER limits only treats one of the symptoms of the issue but does not address the cause at all. How can we treat our seniors like this by not addressing gentrification? We have to slow it and stop it. themainlander/2014/03/27/voices-against-displacement-king-mong-chans-speech-to-city-council/
Posted on: Thu, 27 Mar 2014 23:59:56 +0000
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