Latest Vancouver fire has left dozens more without affordable homes as calls grow for more stable housing

Housing agencies and the City of Vancouver have been scrambling to rehouse close to 60 people following another fire in the Downtown Eastside, as British Columbia struggles to address an acute lack of affordable and social housing.

The full structure fire that crews attended around 3:30 a.m. Monday affected three buildings at Powell Street and Princess Avenue, including two affordable housing sites, fire officials told CBC News. 

One of the single room occupancy (SRO) hotels is privately owned and the other is a transitional housing site called the Princess Rooms, run by the non-profit RainCity Housing.  

RainCity co-executive director Catharine Hume says her organization has worked out temporary plans for some of the 29 residents of Princess Rooms, finding space in its other shelters or in other SROs for the next two to three days.

But she says the fire highlights the precarious nature of housing for many people in the city.

"There's this huge gap between what's needed and what is available currently," Hume told CBC's On the Coast guest host Margaret Gallagher on Monday.

"What continues to be needed is really aggressive investment into affordable housing as well as supportive housing," she said, adding that a new model of housing offering enhanced health-care support also needs more funding.

Vancouver Coun. Pete Fry agrees with Hume, saying most SROs are beyond their "useful lifespan." 

"It's a real challenge," he told On the Coast. "They're constantly being sort of bandaged over to try to keep them viable."

Hume says people will have to wait until the city can do a full inspection of the Princess Rooms building sometime next week to know if or when residents will be able to return.

Fire officials said the roof of the other building that caught fire has collapsed and doubt the structure can be salvaged.

Meanwhile, those who escaped Monday's fire are counting the cost.

Jeffrey Allenson, who lives at 568 Powell St., said he heard a loud "boom" and felt the entire building shake before he fled the building with his wife.

"Your life is just gone," he said. "It's just gone."

Steven Sacky said he grabbed whatever he could before running outside — leaving his livelihood to go up in flames.

"I lost all my drums. I have like 65 drums," he said. "Djembes ... congas, because I teach drums. My business is actually my drums in there."

"We're happy everyone came out safe," Sacky added.

Long-term solutions

Fry says it's time for B.C. to change its approach to long-term housing solutions, citing a shift in Ontario where the housing ministry is investing in municipalities, which are better equipped to address what's happening on the ground.

With the city having recently dispersed encampments on East Hastings Street, he says tensions are boiling over on the Downtown Eastside and he's worried about people's safety living in tents on the sidewalk or in city parks.

"These aren't really tenable for the city in the long run — or even right now," he said.

Fry says he's open to any solutions that will free up resources and offer stability for the unhoused, suggesting the construction of tiny homes.

B.C. Housing Minister and acting Attorney General Murray Rankin says he's on board with creative solutions like Fry's and says the City of Vancouver is already looking at land where it might be able to build those types of modular homes.

"We have to find housing for people who are in dire circumstances and living on the streets," Rankin told CBC News on Monday, a month after taking over the housing portfolio from David Eby — who recently promised swift action on homelessness if he becomes B.C.'s next premier.

"We've managed to get about 1,400 people housed in Vancouver and we've got 700 more supportive housing units on the way," he said. "But there is a real serious short-term problem."

He says 20 new shelter spaces were recently opened and another "50 or so" permanent spaces will be opening in SROs this week.

Rankin says B.C. invests $1.2 billion in housing and homelessness every year and the province is meeting regularly with city officials, regional health authorities, B.C. Housing and other provincial agencies to try to keep up.

While he says Ottawa has shown some "good will" recently, he's hoping for more federal help as he believes all levels of government need to work together to address the issue.

"We're all rolling up our sleeves and working just as hard as we can," he said. "There's a lot of a good co-ordinating work going on right now and we're going to get this done."