Downtown Eastside - DTES Issues

[GenWhy?]

Originally Posted by Vin

It is funny that you take at face value what the article says. So if the run-down SROs are being reno'ed, where would they place all the existing residents, plus all the new ones they are trying to house? Don't they need to build new ones or purchase other buildings to house them too?

My original post highlighting that this could potentially be another waste of taxpayer's funding initiative still stands, as the government still fails to demonstrate how this can solve the homelessness/lawlessness problems of DTES and the Lower Mainland in general. What they are doing is still same'ol, with a lot more money spent in this case. Why should I, as a tax payer, agree to this?

It seems that wasn't a part of the Staff report as I think they were to focus on the retention of SROs and having them be retained at a certain rate (as we are losing both rapidly) - AKA the last line of housing before being homeless.

But the City would most likely work with BC Housing in re-housing folks as they would renovate building by building over a series of years (if upper levels of government pony up - which is unlikely).

Again, this study / report is to examine ways to retain existing SRO stock and prevent them charging high rent. I don't think it talks about solving "homelessness/lawlessness" in the DTES or Lower Mainland - as this is a City of Vancouver report on retaining existing SRO stock and low rates. SRO's are historically the last line of defence and most affordable form of housing before living on the street.

[whatnext]

Not necessarily the best strategy for selling your condo, but seller goes to media to draw attention to gowing disorder:

VANCOUVER -- Ari Newman has called Vancouver’s Strathcona neighbourhood home for the last three years, but that’s about to change.

“It’s been an increasingly bad experience living in Strathcona,” he told CTV News. “I’m seeing an escalation of violent crime, I’m seeing an escalation of violent assault.”

He himself has been assaulted twice while living in the neighbourhood.

“It was out of the blue,” he said of the first time it happened, recalling being blindsided by someone looking for money.

The second time, just a few months ago, he was assaulted by someone riding a bike, again over money.

“I was stopped and, you know, kind of shaken down for money,” he said.

Newman’s negative experiences in the neighbourhood started before the tent city went up in Strathcona Park, but he says the situation has gotten worse in recent months. He listed his condo in the spring, and has spent months calling local and federal politicians trying to get action taken in his neighbourhood.

“There really hasn’t been any action,” he said.

Newman is far from the only Strathcona resident frustrated by a rise in crime in the neighbourhood and calling for an end to the homeless camp. In late September, concerned residents held a rally calling on politicians to find homes for camp residents and dismantle the camp.

While residents like Newman look to sell their homes, real estate agents are seeing interest slow in areas such as Strathcona, Yaletown and Gastown....

...In neighbourhoods like Yaletown, which have typically been highly sought after, he’s says found buyers “steering away.”

“People like the character, they like that it’s right in the city core and the grit,” said Serra. “It’s gone beyond that now and people feel unsafe.”...

https://bc.ctvnews.ca/an-increasingl...ondo-1.5140992

[logan5]

Now DTES folks are setting up tents right in the intersection of Main and Hastings. Not a terribly bright move at this point. Every one of their protests, such as the one going on right now nat Main and Hastings, puts them one step closer to be treated more harshly by authorities. And there will be strong public support for it. Enforcement please.

[MIPS]

That doesn't matter to them. They had troubled lives. It wasn't their choice to take drugs. It wasn't their choice to start drinking. It wasn't their choice that they have a history of violence. It wasn't something they did. It was something someone else did decades or even centuries ago.
Broken record here, these are people who don't want help and will never seek help because to them, they don't have problems. They're clear-minded. It's us that are crazy aid delusional.

VPD won't touch them because they can't take the heat.

[scryer]

-delete-

[s211]

Originally Posted by MIPS

That doesn't matter to them. They had troubled lives. It wasn't their choice to take drugs. It wasn't their choice to start drinking. It wasn't their choice that they have a history of violence. It wasn't something they did. It was something someone else did decades or even centuries ago.
Broken record here, these are people who don't want help and will never seek help because to them, they don't have problems. They're clear-minded. It's us that are crazy aid delusional.

I trust that you're being sarcastic. At least that's my hope.

[WarrenC12]

This particular protest is about police brutality. I can't see the cops going in hard on this.

[Vin]

Originally Posted by MIPS

That doesn't matter to them. They had troubled lives. It wasn't their choice to take drugs. It wasn't their choice to start drinking. It wasn't their choice that they have a history of violence. It wasn't something they did. It was something someone else did decades or even centuries ago.
Broken record here, these are people who don't want help and will never seek help because to them, they don't have problems. They're clear-minded. It's us that are crazy aid delusional.

VPD won't touch them because they can't take the heat.

Exactly, there are elements who vandalize, steal and think the streets belong to them. They are also among the most racist people in this city and often act upon it. Violence is part of their routine in their warped world. Difficult part is how the VPD can weed out these people and remove them from the rest of the population when there seems to be no political will to do that. This is compounded by the fact that when such people are mentioned, the so-called bleeding hearts will start attacking you mercilessly.

[MIPS]

Okay I take back my statement on the VPD as they ultimately cleared the intersection out by 10pm. In light of previous traffic blockades that was a pretty quickly cleared one.

Originally Posted by s211

I trust that you're being sarcastic. At least that's my hope.

No, I'm not. The DTES is a district of crackheads, crazies, hookers, petty thieves and drug dealers mixed with the ultra-poor, urban blight and sleazy businesses which have thrived in an environment of civil complacency for big city status-quo ("eh, there's always rough neighborhoods in big cities. Just look at x") and "not my problem"-isms at all other levels with a few brownie points for hollow election platforms sprinkled around. I'm an all-for advocate for involuntary hospitalization, internment and treatment facilities and the forced clear-out of public spaces that a bunch of strung-out bums want to say belongs to them. I'm never going to say to get rid of all homelessness and transients because you can't and I am likewise not advocating for complete neighborhood gentrification because that will not solve the problem at all but for god sake, scum can't get lower than the bottom of the bucket so lift it off with a high pressure hose. That includes dragging a bunch of rowdy individuals out of an intersection and throwing their belongings away. They aren't achieving anything besides making everyone's evening commute more miserable.

I'm responsible for the actions that put me into that neighborhood for several years but I made my effort to get out of the gutter with success and there is nothing that says they can't go either. Just excuses for why they can stay there just a little bit longer while the next ambitious plan is drafted and fails.

Yes this is an awful thing to say and it paints broad strokes with the brush but the fact is the area has critical problems and the current piecemeal solutions will never outpace the growth of problems, or get close enough to bring them under control. Drastic measures need to be taken. Measures nobody wants to talk about.

[scryer]

Ok so now I'm confused on the position you're taking.

That doesn't matter to them. They had troubled lives. It wasn't their choice to take drugs. It wasn't their choice to start drinking. It wasn't their choice that they have a history of violence. It wasn't something they did. It was something someone else did decades or even centuries ago.
Broken record here, these are people who don't want help and will never seek help because to them, they don't have problems. They're clear-minded. It's us that are crazy aid delusional.

Was this portion of your post supposed to be written from the addict's point of view (hypothetically)? If so then I grotesquely misunderstood your post and I humbly apologize .

[MIPS]

Ohh, I see.
Yeah sorry, there was an emphasis of sarcasm that didn't make it across.

[scryer]

Originally Posted by MIPS

Ohh, I see.
Yeah sorry, there was an emphasis of sarcasm that didn't make it across.

All my typing for nuthin' . I edited my longer post due to the misunderstanding.

Originally Posted by MIPS

The DTES is a district of crackheads, crazies, hookers, petty thieves and drug dealers mixed with the ultra-poor, urban blight and sleazy businesses which have thrived in an environment of civil complacency for big city status-quo ("eh, there's always rough neighborhoods in big cities. Just look at x") and "not my problem"-isms at all other levels with a few brownie points for hollow election platforms sprinkled around. I'm an all-for advocate for involuntary hospitalization, internment and treatment facilities and the forced clear-out of public spaces that a bunch of strung-out bums want to say belongs to them. I'm never going to say to get rid of all homelessness and transients because you can't and I am likewise not advocating for complete neighborhood gentrification because that will not solve the problem at all but for god sake, scum can't get lower than the bottom of the bucket so lift it off with a high pressure hose. That includes dragging a bunch of rowdy individuals out of an intersection and throwing their belongings away. They aren't achieving anything besides making everyone's evening commute more miserable.

I'm responsible for the actions that put me into that neighborhood for several years but I made my effort to get out of the gutter with success and there is nothing that says they can't go either. Just excuses for why they can stay there just a little bit longer while the next ambitious plan is drafted and fails.

Yes this is an awful thing to say and it paints broad strokes with the brush but the fact is the area has critical problems and the current piecemeal solutions will never outpace the growth of problems, or get close enough to bring them under control. Drastic measures need to be taken. Measures nobody wants to talk about.

In an attempt to get this back on topic, I completely agree with you . The excuses from everyone has to stop.

[Feathered Friend]

Crime going down in Vancouver, amidst COVID-19 and Strathcona tent city
Biggest improvement in theft from auto, which fell from 1,445 in August 2019 to 788 in August 2020, five months into the COVID-19 pandemic

Author of the article: David Carrigg
Publishing date:Oct 15, 2020 • Last Updated 21 hours ago • 2 minute read

The latest Vancouver Police Department statistics show a drop in six key crime categories during August compared to the same month a year ago.

The biggest improvement came in the theft-from-auto category, which fell from 1,445 incidents in August 2019 to 788 in August 2020 — five months into the COVID-19 pandemic.

For the same period, assaults across Vancouver fell from 462 to 405, robberies from 67 to 51, sexual offences from 49 to 48, mischief from 418 to 391, and weapons incidents from 130 to 98...

...The Vancouver statistics shows that in the neighbourhood of Strathcona — where a tent city was established in Strathcona Park over the summer — assaults, weapons offences, mischief, thefts from auto and sex offences were all down between August 2019 and August 2020.

More at :
https://vancouversun.com/news/crime-...xp7ijYpreFQPmw

[Jalapeño Chips]

Originally Posted by Feathered Friend

More at :
https://vancouversun.com/news/crime-...xp7ijYpreFQPmw

I wonder how much impact collecting the CERB had on lowering the crime levels?

[whatnext]

More mayhem at the tent city:

Man stabbed in tent at Vancouver's Strathcona Park, found eight hours later
BY MIKE HALL, MARCELLA BERNARDO AND RIA RENOUF
Posted Oct 16, 2020 12:24 pm PDT

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) — A 46-year-old man is in critical, but stable condition after being stabbed inside a tent at Strathcona Park, then wasn’t found for eight hours.

Two possible suspects have been arrested, according to the Vancouver Police Department.

A woman found the man, wrapped in a blood-soaked towel, on the corner of Raymur Avenue and Venables Street around 8 a.m....

https://www.citynews1130.com/2020/10...t-hours-later/

[SeymourDrake]

Wasn't sure where to add this.

Seymour and Helmcken and Seymour and Drake is about to become another area to watch with the approval of a permanent safe injection site (Seymour and Helmcken).

https://bc.ctvnews.ca/video?clipId=2059453

[Prometheus]

We all look forward to the coming improvements to the area now that the mayor and the other geniuses on city council have added a permanent “crack house” to the neighbourhood.

If only all the other neighbourhoods of the city could get this lucky.

[Vin]

Originally Posted by Changing City

No bias; if I spotted anyone else claiming that something was stolen Downtown and abandoned in the DTES, when it had nothing to do with the DTES I'd have called them on it. By posting here you seem to want to have us believe that all the problems are somehow related to the DTES. There have been drug-taking and light-fingered residents Downtown and in the West End for decades, just like there are in the DTES. If you think what they get up to warrants comment, create a thread.

The idea of buying 105 privately owned SROs is very much a DTES related topic, as most, but not all, are in the DTES. As there are now only 77 rooms in all those buildings that rent at the $375 shelter rate, and landlords can ask any rent they can get once tenants change, it's not surprising that homelessness (and tent occupants) are going up. What's your solution to ensuring welfare recipients can find lodgings their welfare payment will cover?

Silent now I see?

[Changing City]

Originally Posted by Vin

Silent now I see?

You should try it sometime. Have you created a new thread to cover all these developments that aren't anything to do with the DTES? I think it's positive to get a safe injection site rather than the mobile centre that's been parked on Seymour for months. I'm sure you don't agree.

[Vin]

Originally Posted by Changing City

You should try it sometime. Have you created a new thread to cover all these developments that aren't anything to do with the DTES? I think it's positive to get a safe injection site rather than the mobile centre that's been parked on Seymour for months. I'm sure you don't agree.

Why not point out others' postings about news not related to DTES like you said you would? Your bias is really showing.

Regarding the safe injection site, I'm sure you would love it if one is created right in front of where you live without any consultation with you.