Panel spotlights architecture and other solutions to tackle homelessness and addiction

We don't need a provincial election to highlight the fact that the housing crisis, homelessness and addiction are top-of-mind for everyone living in Metro Vancouver. Comb any piece of data or report on these topics, and it's sure to raise an alarm. 

For instance: homelessness jumped by 32 per cent in three years from 2020 to 2023. Alongside this, British Columbia has the unfortunate reputation of being Canada's leading province for toxic drug deaths; since 2016, we have lost over 14,000 people to toxic drugs.

There's an inextricable link between homelessness and addiction. And there are more and more calls in B.C. to zoom into the problem so we can better understand the stories of people behind these statistics, and propose robust, preventative and cost-effective policies and solutions. 

The Centre for Urban Economics and Real Estate at the UBC Sauder School of Business recently held a panel to foster a conversation on these solutions. The event was attended by Dr. Alexandra Flynn, Associate Professor at Allard School of Law; Keir Macdonald, CEO of Coast Mental Health; Erika Sagert, Director, Sector Capacity Services BC Non-Profit Housing Association. 

The event and panel discussion was moderated by Thomas Davidoff, Director, UBC Centre for Urban Economics and Real Estate, and one of Metro Vancouver's leading voices on housing and affordability. 

Davidoff said the panel, along with being informative, facilitated an intersectional, multi-disciplinary understanding towards the crisis at hand.

Homelessness and mental health

"Having three different perspectives: a mental health provider, a housing provider advocate, and a law professor who focussed on research and particularly housing as a human right provided a good balance of perspectives," said Davidoff. 

Of the various tracks of discussion, the one that stood out for Davidoff was the causal link between mental health and housing—and it was a key focus for Macdonald, CEO of Coast Mental Health. 

In his presentation, Macdonald noted that "untreated mental illness and substance use disorders can lead to job loss, family breakdown, and instability, making it difficult for individuals to secure or maintain housing." In fact, according to a Coast Mental Health study, 16 per cent of individuals cited 'mental health' as a cause for the loss of housing; 24 per cent attributed it to substance use. 

Given this reality, Macdonald believes policy interventions are not targeting the right areas. "We deal with things in a very expensive way currently - emergency services, police, hospitals, correctional facilities," Macdonald. 

"If we want to move towards solutions, I hope we can shift our energy towards ending homelessness and intervening early instead of just managing the problem." 

The limitations of homelessness data

While mental health and housing was Macdonald's focus, Erica Sagert from BC Non-Profit Housing Association educated the audience on how data around homelessness is collected—and what its limitations are; whereas Dr. Alexandra Flynn of Allard School of Law framed the crisis and solutions from the perspective of Canadian law and constitutional provisions. 

Sagert pointed out that the homeless count exercise—a herculean task where thousands of workers are deployed across Metro Vancouver for a 24-hour period—has some gaps. 

"When we talk about homelessness … we're only talking about visible homelessness. (In the homelessness count) what if we're not including families … people who might be couch-surfing and at risk of homelessness?" noted Sagert. 

She continued: "Given the nature of homelessness, it's very difficult to get both an understanding of a number and understand an experience. That's what we grapple with when we talk about homelessness."

Sagert is referring to data's inability to represent a person's deeply personal and unique story of experiencing homelessness. 

Dr. Flynn of the Allard School of Law echoed Sagert's thoughts: "The truth is - we have a lot of data. We know there's a problem. We also have a lot of solutions at our fingertips. We have a lot of examples from around the world that are working to address the homelessness crisis. This is not happening in a vacuum."

Good architecture and design to combat homelessness

Panel moderator Davidoff steered the conversations towards solutions, and the one that came to the forefront was how 'architecture' can help tackle homelessness. 

The panel was in consensus that the prevailing model of housing people predominantly in SROs—or Single Room Occupancy units—is only making matters worse. Macdonald of Coast Mental Health pointed out that a higher percentage of toxic drug deaths in Vancouver (46 per cent) occur in supportive housing and shelters like SROs, compared to the provincial average (26 per cent).  

Keir emphasized the importance of creating communal spaces and larger unit sizes to support family units. Sagert said that people's experiences on the streets can provide some clues to architects and builders on the kind of housing that would be suitable.  

"Many people don't want to move off the streets because they end up with a big community around them—which is how they survive through the experience of homelessness." With this knowledge, housing design should serve to provide opportunities for people to build community and cultivate safety and security. 

"It's not a 'nice-to-have'. Well-designed housing helps people recover faster," said Sagert.

An opportunity to collaborate on solutions for the future  

Dr. Flynn of Allard School of Law concluded the discussion by proposing a multi-prong approach to the crisis: retention of existing affordable and supportive housing, building different housing models such as co-op housing, ironing out regulatory issues around modular housing and tapping into public land that are currently under-utilized or vacant. 

Davidoff closed off the evening with questions from the audience. He said events like these are important not just to offer an educated discourse on the topics, but to also gather like-minded people who could team up to build solutions in the future.

"The audience usually is UBC Sauder alumni and real estate professionals, which provides a great basis for networking. The audience also consisted of people from advocacy and academic background, and events like these provide a fertile ground to exchange learning opportunities," said Davidoff. 

Ultimately, Davidoff hoped the panel discussion threw a sharper spotlight on the crisis at hand—and the long-term solutions needed to tackle them.

He said: "I hope the next B.C. government will give thought to the most cost-effective way to solve these problems, both for general quality of life and for humanitarian purposes."

To view the presentation pdfs from the panelists, or to watch the full event video, click here to visit the event page.