Arnie Snowden lives in a room at a Vancouver SRO that costs $450 a month.
“I spend half of the day stepping on cockroaches, and I stay up all night chasing mice,” he said.
Snowden suffered a stroke and the room at the Cobalt Hotel is all he can afford. And he’s concerned he may end up on the street.
“If they increased rents here, I’d be gone by nightfall,” he said.
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A new report from the Carnegie Community Action Project (CCAP) said average rents in the city’s eight fastest gentrifying hotels have doubled to $900 since 2009, making shelter beyond reach for the people who need it most.
Advocates say while rents are rising, SRO supply is dwindling thanks to gentrification. They fear construction of the new St. Paul’s Hospital on Station Street will lead to the loss of 500 nearby units.
“When a hospital comes in, there’s going to be a need for workers to have housing nearby, there’s going to be a need for businesses nearby, so property values are going to go up nearby,” Jean Swanson of the CCAP said.
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New businesses are already transforming Main Street and some say the change is just beginning.
“There is going to be a demand for homes in this area. Who doesn’t want to live closer to work?” said Patryk Drozd, owner of the Boxcar bar, said.
But officials say low-income housing near the future hospital site is protected by a Downtown Eastside plan, which can make the cost of turning an SRO into market housing prohibitive.
“If you want to convert a SRO room, it would now cost you $125,000 per room plus you would need the approval of city council,” Vancouver City Councillor Andrea Reimer said.
Advocates say better welfare rates and rent control could make housing more accessible, but in a rapidly changing neighbourhood, even that might not be enough.
– With files from Tanya Beja