Vancouver's Social Housing Initiative - Dunbar Community Cafe Monday, December 8, 11 am Room 102

 

December 3, 2025 - our 44th Wedding Anniversary

On December 3rd, 1981, Sally and I got married at the Vancouver Courthouse under the waterfall. We nearly missed our wedding ceremony since as we were leaving our Peter Wardle designed townhouse at Macdonald and West Second, the front door handle fell off and we couldn't get out. We eventually had to squeeze out through a partially open sliding door.

We waited five years before getting married. Or rather I waited five years. But this had more to do with my mother than any uncertainty on my part. I knew we would be good together and we have been. Most of our friends are amazed that Sally could put up with me for so long, but everyone who meets her knows her to be a lovely and remarkably open-minded and caring person. That's no doubt why our two daughters have turned out so well and why she has so many friends, from so many different walks of life.

Since our wedding day, we've been fortunate to travel a lot including a nine-month trip around the world in 2007. We've golfed together, partied together, had a lot of meals together, and enjoyed special occasions like the Olympics. At our age, we know that we are beginning to run out of time, but we have few regrets and will continue to enjoy each day as if it were our last and hopefully enjoy a few more anniversaries together.

 

Vancouver's Social Housing Initiative Public Hearing - Geller Speaking Notes - November 27, 2025

While the Social Housing Initiative is proposing the blanket rezoning of a third of the city for highrises, you wouldn't know this from the cover of the Engagement Summary Report!

Last June, I wrote about my concerns with a most inappropriate City of Vancouver planning initiative, namely the blanket rezoning of approximately a third of the city to allow social housing towers up to 20 storeys in height, at an FSR of 6.0 without any further public input. This would allow new towers juxtaposed along quiet, low-scale residential streets at ten times the height and density. It just seemed so wrong. 

My concerns can be found here. https://gellersworldtravel.blogspot.com/2025/06/vancouvers-proposed-social-housing.html

Tonight, Vancouver City Council is holding a Public Hearing at which this initiative will be discussed. I signed up to speak earlier this week and am speaker number 23. I'll be curious to hear whether those speaking before me are also in opposition, or whether there will be dozens of YIMBY supporters speaking in favour of what can best be described as a well-intentioned but ill-advised initiative.

When I recently asked someone 'in the know' why the city planners would be proposing this, he responded that the initiative did not come from staff; it was directed by the province. While we may never know whether this is true, regardless, I am hoping city council will not approve the initiative and send it back to staff for further consideration. 

Below is the letter I have submitted to Council which will serve as the basis for my 5-minute presentation.

Dear Mayor and Council, 

Re: Social Housing Initiative

As a former Program Manager- Social Housing for CMHC in the 1970s, and architect/ planner and developer for the subsequent five decades, I believe social housing should be allowed everywhere throughout the city. 

That said, I have serious concerns with a key aspect of the Social Housing Initiative, namely the proposal to blanket rezone approximately one third of the city to allow highrise buildings up to 20 storeys in height and 6 FSR without the need for any public hearings.

My first concern relates to the urban design consequences of juxtaposing highrises along quiet low-scale neighbourhood streets at ten times the height and density of existing homes. While taller buildings are appropriate when clustered in a neighbourhood or sited along major streets and transition zones behind these streets, wedging towers along these charming, neighbourhood streets is inappropriate for so many reasons. 

My second concern is why are we even proposing towers in these locations?

The city defines social housing as that which is 100% owned by governments or non-profits with at least 30% of the units affordable to those with incomes at or below the ‘Housing Income Limits (HILs). Housing income limits are the maximum household incomes to qualify for subsidized or affordable housing programs and vary by unit type, location, etc. 

In Vancouver, those in greatest need for subsidized social housing include the unhoused, families with children, and seniors. 

The unhoused have nowhere to live and often need supportive housing. However, 15-20 storey towers with 100 to 150 suites are the wrong building form for these households. Research has concluded that to be successful, buildings providing this type of supportive housing should be limited a maximum of 60 units in a low or midrise building.

Similarly, 20 storey towers at a 6 FSR are not the right solution for low-income families with children. As clearly set out in the highly regarded city publication Housing Families at Higher Densities (which has been adopted by Council on three different occasions) “Family housing developments should be compatible in scale, character, and materials to their surrounding neighbourhood.”

Many low-income seniors are also seeking homes. When I oversaw the social housing programs at CMHC, we funded thousands of suitably designed self-contained suites for seniors in highrises. But today, the greatest need is not for more self-contained apartments. Rather it is for new buildings offering levels of care. 

As Dan Levitt, the Seniors Advocate has often reported, the waitlist for long-term care in B.C. has ballooned. Between 2016 and 2025, the number of people waiting to be admitted has tripled. Average wait times have doubled over this period.

The need to build more care facilities is particularly urgent since so many low-income seniors are occupying expensive hospital beds since there is nowhere else for them to go. 

These care facilities require horizontal building forms rather than highrise buildings.

To conclude, while I agree Council should allow social housing everywhere in the city, I cannot understand why city staff are recommending such extensive blanket rezoning for highrises, especially when only 30% of the units may be providing subsidized homes. 

Just as most of the areas coloured yellow on the city map could be suitable for buildings up to six storeys in height, I would recommend allowing six-storey buildings in many of these areas as well. If there is justification for a tower, let it go through a rezoning process with an opportunity for the public to have a say.

In a recent discussion with someone in the know, I questioned why city staff would be recommending housing initiatives that just did not make sense from a planning perspective. He told me this initiative did not originate with city staff. It was directed by the province. 

While I would like to know if this is true or not, regardless of the answer, I would urge Council not to approve this Social Housing Initiative as proposed and send it back to staff for further consideration. 

Respectively submitted, 

Michael A. Geller 

Fellow, Canadian Institute of Planners. Registered Professional Planner,                                          Retired Architect, Architectural Institute of British Columbia. 

 

A stopover in Reykjavik

 When I was booking my flight to England, a flight on Icelandic Air popped up. The Business Class fare was about half the price of either British Airways or Air Canada and you could arrange for a stopover in Reykjavik. Since I had never been to Iceland and my friends Chuck Brook and Michael Audain both had good things to say about it I decided to book the flight.

Onboard I discovered that business class on Icelandic Air is different then other airlines in that it doesn't offer a pod with a flatbed. However, since the flight was broken up into two stages, I wasn’t too concerned.

Before leaving London, I booked a hotel in the centre of town. Since I was going to be arriving late at night and leaving early in the morning, I decided to stay at a Radisson Blu where I've had good experiences in the past. I also confirm the times for a hop on hop off bus tour since I knew that would be the best way to get an overview of the city.

So this is what I was expecting....

When I told people I was going to Iceland they all said I must try and visit the Blue Lagoon. On my way to London, we stopped off for an hour and from the air, and in the airport, the city seemed quite attractive.  I was very much looking forward to my stopover on the way home.

This is what I found when I arrived. To make things worse, the bus did not take me to the hotel as I had assumed. It took me to a bus depot and then I had to wait for another bus to take me to the hotel. I arrived at 2:30 am.

However, things did not go quite as I had hoped. Two days before I arrived Reykjavik the city experienced the worst snowstorm in its history during the month of October. The airport had been closed down and so had much of the city.

So instead of arriving in the delightful, colourful place featured in online photos, everything was covered in snow.

Before leaving the hotel, I asked the front counter staff whether the tour bus was running, and they confirmed it was. While they could book a ticket, I could also get one on board. Unfortunately, I didn't realize how bad the weather was until I left the hotel. It was sleeting outside, but fortunately I had a small umbrella I had picked up in Boots before leaving England.

That’s when a gust of wind came along and literally pulled me and my umbrella across the icy pavement knocking me over. Soon blood was pouring from my thumb onto the snow and I realized that this wasn't quite working out the way I had hoped.

I found the stop where my tour bus was supposed to pick me up only to learn that it had been cancelled for the day. A few more gusts of wind and I decided it was best to get back to the airport. I took this photo of sites I would miss including the penis museum and eventually got back to the airport. Fortunately, the bus driver had a first aid kit and other passengers were eager to offer bandages for my bloody thumb.

The Radisson Blue looked about as inviting as I could expect under the circumstances.

The room had a nice Scandinavian vibe and I liked the mural in the shower.

There was a decent Nespresso machine with a neat little tray below.

The view as I left the hotel...

Everyone told me I had to see the Opera House, and I did.

Eventually I found a bus to take me back to the airport. While blood was pouring out of my thumb, fortunately many passengers were pleased to offer me bandages.

I guess this is what I should have expected...

The Icelandic Air business lounge in Reykjavik is significantly nicer than the lounge they use in Vancouver. There I found a variety of local gins, smoked meats, cheeses, salads, and my favorite…. herring.

I had about 5 hours before my flight departed and it turned into a wonderful afternoon.

While I'm not sure if I'll ever return to Iceland, at least now if someone asks me if I have ever been to Iceland, I can say yes.