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May 16, 2008
Creating affordable housing
The first of hopefully several projects opens in Marpole.
OLGA LIVSHIN
Vancouver's housing problem affects every community in the city, cutting across cultures and income brackets. Concerned with such issues, Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver (JFGV) has identified affordable housing as one of its top priorities and has been searching for solutions. One of those solutions is the opening of Dany Guincher House, a place where some disadvantaged Jews will be able to find a home.
Tikva Project is one of the latest in a series of JFGV initiatives to assist the members of the local Jewish community with their housing needs. It started in 1994 as the Non-Profit Housing Society (NPHS), under the JFGV umbrella. Since then, several studies of the situation have been conducted by three Federation committees – the Council on Poverty, the Seniors Advisory Council and NPHS – along with the Jewish Family Service Agency.
The findings stated that, according to the census of 2001 and contrary to common belief, more than 3,000 Jews in Greater Vancouver, more than 10 per cent of the area's Jewish population, live below the so-called poverty line and are in need of some sort of assisted housing. Among them are seniors, people coping with disabilities and families with small children. Some of them, like abuse victims, having been shuttled from shelter to shelter for weeks, and require emergency housing.
The existing supply of affordable housing for low-income Jews serves mainly seniors. The Louis Brier Home and Hospital, the Weinberg Residence, the B'nai Brith Society and a few other groups house approximately 50 per cent of the seniors in need. Younger low-income Jewish families and singles, including people with disabilities, haven't been that lucky. Until recently, they had almost nowhere to go.
To address the gap between the availability and need for housing for younger Jewish people, JFGV set aside special funds for NPHS to hire a consultant to deal with the practical side of its day-to-day operations. The consultant they hired, Susana Cogan, had previously worked for B.C. Housing for 25 years. In September 2006, after studying all the available options, Cogan prepared the Housing Action Plan that outlined the housing crisis within the Jewish community of Greater Vancouver and suggested a range of possible alternatives.
Among the solutions proposed were buying land and constructing a new building, designated as affordable housing; acquiring an existing house and renovating it; setting up a special housing fund for rental subsidies; and finding Jewish landlords willing to participate in the Community Affordable Rental Program (CARP). The report compared all of the ideas using a number of parameters, including cost, available funds, fundraising challenges, timelines and remaining assets. Following the report's recommendations, NPHS decided as its first step to purchase an existing building, in Vancouver, where most of the Jewish people of the Lower Mainland reside, so that people could remain close to their existing support structures, including synagogues, schools and friends.
It was a time-consuming process. Legal work had to be done. Funds had to be raised. During one of NPHS's many visits to the Vancouver Housing Centre, the centre's director, Cameron Gray, suggested they change their name: Non-Profit Housing Society sounded too neutral, faceless and a mouthful besides. The board members of the society, co-chaired by Rozanne Kipnes and Janice Richmond, agreed. On Aug. 31, 2007, the name was changed to Tikva Housing Society. Tikva is the Hebrew word for hope.
In October 2007, Tikva made its first acquisition – an 11-unit building in the Marpole area. The units are mainly one-bedroom, targeting singles with disabilities, the homeless, as well as abuse victims. Tikva's announcement on the purchase read: "This first acquisition ... was made possible through ... extremely generous support of our lead donor, Luis Guincher and family. With the Guincher family carrying the torch, and with the assistance of the Jewish Federation, we were successful in securing the necessary local donations, including the Diamond Foundation, Danny and Trudy Pekarsky, Morley and Myrna Koffman,
Annette Rothstein and Harley and Eleanor Rothstein, and the Zalkow Foundation. These gifts allowed us to meet the equity requirements (35 per cent of the project) for our government-funding partner B.C. Housing. We thank the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver, the board of directors and specially Mark Gurvis and Abba Brodt for their commitment and support in assisting in every possible way to 'close the deal.'"
The first few Jewish tenants have already moved into their new, affordable home in Marpole. Tikva is looking forward to new houses and new donors, aiming to provide affordable living for more Jewish families in need. Tikva's motto is "to maintain a strong and enduring Jewish community where all members are equally looked after."
The opening ceremony, attended by MLA Carole Taylor, will take place on May 26, 10 a.m., at Dany Guincher House, 1436 West 71st Ave.
Olga Livshin is a Vancouver freelance writer.
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