The Quesnel Shelter &Support Society (QS&SS) issued a release Monday accusing Mayor Bob Simpson of obstructing BC Housing’s proposed Elliott Street supportive housing development in West Quesnel.
The statement said: “We are appalled the Mayor would jeopardize this project due to his vote-driven behaviour. In direct contrast to the mayor’s comments we have not ‘stymied the progress’ of the Good Neighbour Agreement, but in fact, had come to an agreement with city staff prior to the public meeting at city hall.”
It went on to say: “The mayor has used his position to bully our society and attempt to micromanage operations.
“We are committed to this project and have not obstructed the process in any way; however, we will not be bullied by threats ... and we caution the mayor to exercise care in this regard.”
The statement comes after city council decided to defer further readings of the Elliott Street supportive housing bylaws, citing lack of clarity on the project.
The proposed building for Elliott Street is a partnership between BC Housing and QS&SS. It would provide 28 units for independent supportive housing, eight year-round shelter beds, four units of support recovery and up to 10 extreme weather response beds from November to March.
BC Housing and QS&SS have committed to a Good Neighbour Agreement, which would see the housing facility work with residents of the area to improve the neighbourhood and address their concerns in a timely manner.
The proposed facility would see Seasons House on Carson Ave. close.
QS&SS as well as the City of Quesnel have expressed concern as to where the drop-in services currently offered through Seasons House (which is run by QS&SS) would be offered if the Carson Ave. unit is closed.
In a City of Quesnel news release dated Sept. 21, Mayor Simpson was quoted as saying: “We hope that BC Housing will work with the community to clarify the confusion about what services will and will not be offered at their proposed supportive housing facility.
“This confusion has come as a result of the proposed operator (the Quesnel Shelter and Support Society, which currently runs Seasons House) refusing to work cooperatively with the city to develop agreements that will avoid a repeat of the significant community safety issues created by the way the current homeless shelter is being managed.”
Contacted after QS&SS’s press release, Mayor Simpson said: “To single out the mayor is nonsensical. The mayor has no unilateral authority over anything. It’s a gross misunderstanding of municipal law and of council process. Every dialogue we have had about this project has come as a result of a staff report giving us recommendations.
“To suggest that it’s the mayor that is mischaracterizing is really just a personal attack and a misrepresentation of how the city does business.
“The public can read the staff reports that have come to council that clearly present a fact set that is very different from what the Shelter Society is trying to propagate.”
“The reports state that as of today none of the agreements we require are completed.”
The mayor went on to say that city council has chosen to defer further readings of the bylaws to allow the public dialogue to continue.
“QS&SS have a particular subset of our community that they are solely focused on. Council’s responsibility is to the community at large, including that subset. When we ask the public for feedback, we need to do it with clarity and transparency so the public understands what we are asking them to accept in their neighbourhood.
“To this day we still do not have clarity on what the intention for that building is. It’s a process issue.”
QS&SS president Heather Peters commented: “We are disappointed that City Council isn’t actively trying to support us in this. We believed we had a good working relationship with the City and we are extremely concerned about our clients at this point.
“We have been as clear as we possibly can. We are deeply concerned that the city is putting hoops in front of us to jump before they will consider the bylaw amendments again. The hoops are over and above what organizations have to do in most locations for this kind of thing. It feels as if they are just trying to prevent it from happening.”
Council heard another report from the director of development services at a council meeting on Tuesday night, recommending a second public hearing and open house information session on the proposed Elliott Street supportive housing facility before council moves forward with the proposed bylaw amendments.