Indian Spokesman Bureau
VANCOUVER: ‘Out of frying pan into the fire’ seems to be the ostensible accomplishment of the British Columbia government’s upcoming housing policy, especially for the communities residing on the thickly populated lower mainland.
The new housing protocol will allow the existing houses to be converted into three to six independent dwelling units, depending on the lot size. Consequently, the population will grow significantly, and so will the number of vehicles needed to commute.
Already brimming with population, have cities like Vancouver, Surrey, Burnaby, New West Minister, Richmond, Delta, and Langley got the capacity to accommodate more people?
Problems being faced by the lower mainland communities seem to have been overlooked while bringing in the new regime. Complications of congestion, persistent traffic bottlenecks, a lack of hospitals and public schools, etc. have been given scant regard in taking this drastic step.
Undoubtedly, the problem of housing in BC is quite acute and should be tackled on a priority basis. But should it be done at this expense by pushing the communities virtually into a state of asphyxiation?
The new housing policy will, of course, help increase the number of dwelling units, and consequently, prices will be streamlined. But such a development model can be well acclaimed in a third-world country, not in a country like Canada, whose cities fetch the top ranking in the list of the most liveable cities in the world.
The current population finds the existing infrastructure inadequate. Erratic traffic jams, leading to an increase in road accidents, have unnerved commuters to the extent that they take sighs of relief upon arriving at their destination unscathed. Due to a lack of hospitals and doctors, people have to wait unduly long hours for their turn to be medically examined or admitted for treatment. There are no proper classrooms in several public schools.
Now, as the doors are being opened to a single residential house to convert into a multi-house and accommodate more people, is there also a plan to simultaneously upgrade the infrastructure? Where is the plan to expand roads or raise elevated roads where needed? Where is the plan to develop road elevators at busy intersections? Where is the plan to expand sky-train to the peripheral cities of Vancouver? Where is the plan to raise more hospitals, schools, play grounds, public parks, and children’s parks? Where is the plan to grow more plants for ecological balance, as houses will lose green spaces in the process of conversion to multi-dwellings?
In my view, the problem of housing should have been tackled by developing an additional city of the scale of Vancouver in a suitable place by causing the least harm to flora and fauna. The development costs of a new city could have been raised by obtaining 20 per cent of the cost of the commercial or residential lots from prospective buyers in advance.
#Home #House #Housing #Policy #BC #Canada #Affordability