UBCM’s Executive Board met with provincial leaders in Victoria to talk about common challenges local governments are dealing with across the province, with a focus on housing and homelessness, community safety, and infrastructure. Meetings with Premier Eby, Ministers Kahlon, Farnworth, Whiteside, Conroy and more, were an opportunity to discuss the ways these issues are affecting communities across the province, and what action is needed from the Province.
The housing crisis looks differently in communities across the province, but there is much in common. Waiting lists for supporting housing have increased dramatically, as have the number of people who count themselves as homeless. Earlier this year Victoria and Cranbrook, two very different cities, both resorted to sending an invoice to the Province for costs related to homelessness, a provincial responsibility.
“Shelter beds, safe consumption sites, addiction treatment, and mental health these are Provincial services. Unfortunately, the funding The Province provides for them has not kept pace with the need,” said UBCM President, Trish Mandewo.
Other communities are struggling with increased costs for police and fire services responding to healthcare-related emergencies, which is also a provincial responsibility. UBCM wants to ensure that addressing these cost pressures is prioritized in the next phase of the Police Act and public safety review.
“There is a cost to providing these services, but there's an even greater cost for not providing them,” she said. “Everyone in need of a shelter space who can't find one pays the cost. Vandalized businesses pay the cost. Police and fire services providing pre-emergency healthcare pay the cost. And local governments, as they manage the fallout, pay the cost.”
At the same time, BC local governments are facing serious infrastructure bills in the coming years. One estimate suggests $24 billion of core infrastructure will need to be replaced in the next 10 years. On top of that, local governments face emerging infrastructure pressures to adapt to climate change, comply with environmental regulations, and accommodate BC’s record population growth. Executive members reiterated the need for long-term stable funding to support sustainable service delivery in BC communities.
UBCM is grateful to the provincial officials for making themselves available to meet and we look forward to working together on these issues.