The City of Penticton has to 香蕉视频直播渁tone香蕉视频直播� for the displacement of renters of older buildings, as they are swept aside for record-level developments in the city, the planning director said.
The comment comes in the wake of a Western News feature on a family living up in the Carmi hill area, with one man saying up to 28 families live in the area 香蕉视频直播� though he now says many of those families have left the South Okanagan to try their luck elsewhere, as winter approaches.
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It香蕉视频直播檚 not just people on low incomes that have felt the wrath of Penticton香蕉视频直播檚 red-hot rental market.
Penny Brown-Alvord said she and her family moved to Penticton from Red Deer in June, with the expectation that they would have to camp out for part of the summer, acknowledging the difficulties she would face with pets and a child.
香蕉视频直播淪o we had already made the decision we would just camp, but we would watch for properties to become available, and then that way if we found something, great, then if not, we would wait until September,香蕉视频直播� Brown-Alvord said.
But Brown-Alvord said when she approached one property management group, she was rebuffed in a blunt manner.
香蕉视频直播淭he guy in there was so ignorant. He was like, 香蕉视频直播榳hy are you here?香蕉视频直播櫹憬妒悠抵辈 she said. 香蕉视频直播淎nd 香蕉视频直播榦h, you have pets? You need to go back to Red Deer.香蕉视频直播櫹憬妒悠抵辈
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The family was camping out on a site on Penticton Indian Band land, where Lavern Jack was allowing a number of people to stay.
香蕉视频直播淭hey were facing the same problems. They were having a hard time finding something affordable,香蕉视频直播� Brown-Alvord said, referring to other couples living on the campground this summer, where one couple is reportedly still living.
Brown-Alvord said they were looking in places as far as Princeton, but with a 10-year-old girl, they were getting anxious toward the end of the summer, needing a fixed address to register for school.
香蕉视频直播淚 was replying to Kijiji ads and whatnot, and landlords, they didn香蕉视频直播檛 get back to you,香蕉视频直播� she said. 香蕉视频直播淲e were frustrated with the whole system.香蕉视频直播�
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To get a hot shower, Brown-Alvord said the family had to go to the community centre, where it cost $20 to get into the facilities for all three of them.
香蕉视频直播淲hich is fine. Those are the things that you pay for, but I thought about people who are looking for work, and how do they get themselves presentable?香蕉视频直播� she said.
Brown-Alvord said the family eventually found an affordable place in Peachland, though she said the process was 香蕉视频直播渟tressful as hell,香蕉视频直播� even though her family could afford more than others in the campsite.
City planner Blake Laven acknowledged that while record-level developments in Penticton means easier access to housing for people looking to buy, it香蕉视频直播檚 been to the detriment of people in precarious housing situations.
香蕉视频直播淔or every house that we kind of tear down to build new duplexes and new housing, we香蕉视频直播檙e displacing families and rooming houses, where there香蕉视频直播檚 four or five people living in a roommate situation,香蕉视频直播� Laven said. 香蕉视频直播淢aybe two or three of them find other roommates to move in with, or two of them end up couch surfing and one of them might end up in the shelters or on the street.香蕉视频直播�
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A construction boom in the city contributes to economic development, but it has come at the cost of people on the margins. Laven said the city 香蕉视频直播渉as to atone for that, too.香蕉视频直播�
Brown-Alvord said her family has seen both sides of that coin 香蕉视频直播� her husband easily obtained work in the construction industry, while they found difficulty, even as a middle-class family, finding a rental in a market with little interest in building units with tenure. She added things like summer vacation rentals and summer homes can clog up the housing market, with her family expected to move out of their current place by the end of April. But the city has indicated in past council meetings they aren香蕉视频直播檛 looking to curb vacation rentals. A January email from former communications director Mark Parker obtained through a freedom-of-information request indicates much the same.
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香蕉视频直播淲e don香蕉视频直播檛 want to indicate we are against them. As far as I know, we are in favour as long as they play by the rules,香蕉视频直播� Parker wrote in an email dated Jan. 17 regarding a Facebook comment calling for action on vacation rentals.
香蕉视频直播淭his person seems to think the city should adjust property taxes based on the revenue from a vacation rental, and also impose rent controls 香蕉视频直播� sorry, it香蕉视频直播檚 Penticton, not Pyongyang. There are limits to what we can and should be wading into. But we have lots of pot shops, at least!香蕉视频直播�
Brown-Alvord said she香蕉视频直播檚 comfortable with repeating a summer spent camping, saying it made for a great summer for her young daughter, spending everyday outdoors.
Laven said there might be some appetite for utilizing something like economic incentive zones to encourage more rental units. But, he said, the city is waiting to see how the opening of a Broadway Properties rental building on Kinney Avenue fills up when it香蕉视频直播檚 completed, with a similar building from the same firm filling up long before it was completed.
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香蕉视频直播淲e have about 2,000 rental apartment units in Penticton, so that香蕉视频直播檚 increasing our number of units by almost 10 per cent,香蕉视频直播� Laven said. 香蕉视频直播淚 think we just wanted to see what that was going to do to our vacancy rate before we started incentivizing it.香蕉视频直播�
Among the efforts to curb homelessness, which Laven admitted the city was late to respond to, the old Bel-Air Motel has been converted into low-income units run by B.C. Housing, now called Fairhaven, while council has also approved another motel conversion at the old Super 8.
At the Union of B.C. Municipalities convention last week, the city was looking to get into a pilot program that will provide 2,000 units of modular housing at a low-income rate.
香蕉视频直播淗opefully by the end of October, we香蕉视频直播檙e physically going down to spend a bit more time on it than just the 10-minute sort of speed dating that you get, 15-minute speed dating that you get when you meet with the ministers at UBCM,香蕉视频直播� Mayor Andrew Jakubeit said.
香蕉视频直播淎t this time no one香蕉视频直播檚 really committing to anything, other than saying 香蕉视频直播� they recognize the need for it, there香蕉视频直播檚 a commitment to make this happen.香蕉视频直播�
dustin.godfrey@pentictonwesternnews.com
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