A backlash to the backlash is forming as supporters of a proposed housing project for the homeless call for an “emergency action planning forum.”
Richmond Poverty Response Committee (PRC) is hosting “From NIMBY to YIMBY,” (From Not In My Back Yard to Yes, In My Back Yard) Wednesday, March 21 at Richmond Caring Place 6-8 p.m.
“It is important to show Richmond city council that the community is in support of the project (at Elmbridge Way), which will help people move off the street into a supportive environment,” said the Richmond PRC website.
PRC president De Whalen told the Richmond News that the forum is being hosted to bring people supporting the project together, so that they can discuss “a coordinated campaign of action."
“We think it’s the right place to build it, it’s the right time; we should be doing it right now. That’s the main message. We will see where it goes from there,” said Whalen.
“There appears to be some opposition to both the concept of supportive housing and the proposed location. There is a lot of misinformation out there based on I don’t know what.
“We want to get the right information to people, to alleviate their fears and to lay some common ground if that’s possible.”
She said that it’s a private forum and that people are being asked to confirm their attendance online no later than Tuesday, March 20.
Meanwhile, a bilingual (English/Chinese) petition supporting the Elmbridge Way housing project was launched over the weekend by two University of Toronto students who grew up in Richmond. To date, the petition has collected more than 500 signatures.
On Sunday, De Whalen made an appearance at the anti-modular housing forum at the Sheraton Hotel, organized by some Brighouse residents, along with 50 or so audience members.
“Some of the conclusions they came to were based on misinformation; that’s unfortunate. But there is some common ground we can work on,” said Whalen.
“We agree that there should be more resources for people in need, that there should be a detox centre in Richmond, and that the city should further explore shelterability and capacity.”
However, she also thinks there is a lot of “fear-mongering, especially through Wechat,” adding that she is planning on having coffee with protest organizers sometime this week to talk about it.
“They were very pleasant and willing to talk and discuss with us, and were willing to know if their information was wrong and needed to be corrected. I came out (of the forum) feeling good about it. Maybe there is hope,” said Whalen.
“We have to seek to understand each other. At least we can come up with what the facts are, and we can base our opinions – whether our opinions are different or not – on the facts, and then can go from there.”
