Burnaby council to receive recommendations this summer on how to address housing crisis

The City of Burnaby has been ground zero for “demovictions” in Metro Vancouver, but efforts are underway to find a solution to the ongoing problem.

A group called Your Voice, Your Home, which is partnership between the city and SFU’s J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue, has been meeting with Burnaby residents since January.

The public consultation and surveys aim to determine the city’s current and future housing needs.

Program director Robin Prest says the problems are striking.

“They have concerns about families who can’t afford to live in the city, so families being broken up and need to live far away,” Prest said.

“We’re hearing from youth who think they’ll always be renting because they can’t imagine ever owning a home. We are hearing from folks who are not on their first or second, but their fourth or fifth demoviction.”

The group has talked to 2,300 people in the community so far, and will be presenting its recommendations to city council and the Mayor’s Task Force in July.