Thread by @YVRTenantsUnion

#Renovicted and #Demovicted tenants gathered this morning to to address the CoV’s 236-pg Rental Incentive Report Back demanding adequate disincentives for displacement. #VanPoli

Exhibit A: The Tenant Relocation & Protection Policy, which Council relies on to mitigate displacement, is toothles:
“The TRPP doesn’t help us; the landlord just sends us a few Craigslist Ads,” - Sarah, a renovicted tenant in Mt Pleasant who lives on disability.

Exhibit B: City Staff know the TRPP isn’t working:
“We’ve been trying to get our landlord to fulfill the TRPP, and the city hasn’t been much help... now 75% of my income goes to rent” - Milo, a demovicted tenant in Hastings-Sunrise

Exhibit C: The city‘s Right of First Refusal policy does not let tenants return at their old rents, so tenants are still displaced:
“We are losing our neighbours of many years, and we are losing our neighbourhood” - Brad, renovicted tenant from Berkeley Tower in the West End

Possible solutions - look to #Burnaby
The Mayor’s Task Force on Housing recommended meaningful policies like

✅Right of First Refusal at the same rent for renovictions/demovictions
✅Rent Stabilization in temporary accommodation paid for by developer while new unit being built

“If these protections are possible in Burnaby and we had four representatives from the development community on the Task Force, why is it not being considered in Vancouver? - Murray Martin of @BC_ACORN

The City’s tenant protections and rental incentive policies continue to fail the working class and low income tenants who are being forced out of their homes and communities. It doesn’t have to be this way, but today’s staff report is a continuation of this trend.