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Community Engagement Agenda

Environmental Resiliency = Community Resiliency

​Our environmental responsibilities are various and require action on several fronts. One of those areas for action is expanding our parks and natural spaces. Our sense of a home place, many of our recreation activities, our core city services, and those places we seek out healing and calm rely on natural areas. Healthy forested areas, and watersheds support values as diverse as health and wellness, biodiversity, and storm water retention and attenuation. Even as we grow as a city, we need to ensure that we live in visibly green neighbourhoods in close proximity to natural settings.

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We can't continue to operate in an ecosystem deficit. ​

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 Biodiversity is good for sustainable service delivery, community and the bottom line.

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Affordability and Liveability

​Despite provincial and national trends, the cost to rent in Nanaimo has increased. Many  people have been priced out of housing and home ownership and are finding it increasingly hard to find affordable housing to fit their needs. Housing costs are outpacing income.

 

We need to balance Nanaimo’s contribution of waived and reduced fees with effective tenant protection in the case of rental displacement and effective rental supports to ensure access of truly affordable housing, with oversight by City staff. The costs of development should not be borne by vulnerable individuals and families displaced and unhoused by development. Effective tenancy protection and rental support keeps people housed.

 

We also need to attract and support businesses. A city rich in natural amenities is an attractive location for both businesses and a workforce. Where our businesses experience challenges due to disruption in transportation networks and other public works, we can lower and waive fees to offset disruption related losses. Young people and families in Nanaimo deserve the opportunity to live, work, and play in their home community.

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Safety

​Safety concerns in our neighbourhoods cover the gamut. From concerns around traffic safety to property damage and vulnerability. Working in our Neighbourhoods we need to mesh data with lived experience to make sure that the safety needs of the community are met. That may mean extending lower speed zones around schools, play grounds, and neighbourhoods where active transportation infrastructure, like sidewalks, doesn’t yet exist. In other neighbourhoods it may mean increased Community Safety Officer presence to ensure those in need find appropriate services and residents and businesses enjoy a safe environment.

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Housing is a Right

In addition to effective tenancy protections to keep people housed mentioned above under the heading of Affordability and Liveability,  our most vulnerable citizens deserve the right to safe, secure, and, when needed, supportive housing.

I support removing politics from addiction treatment and following pathways that are proven to work. Many models of supportive housing are needed as well as the services to help navigate housing, healthcare, and employment opportunities.

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Actions:

  • We can ensure that all development proposals that included Environmental Development Approval Areas are not considered through the delegated approval process, thereby allowing council oversight and a conduit for including community concerns in decision making. We need to protect places like the Rock City Wetland.

  • We can support the initiative to remove certain activities from Industrial zoning to allow oversight and community a say in which industrial activities belong where in our city. This will give us the opportunity to decide whether or not data centres or garbage incinerators belong in Nanaimo.

  • We can extend 30km/h speed zones around schools and where active transportation infrastructure, like sidewalks, does not yet exist. 30km/h saves lives.

  • We can work with senior government to provide the full array of supportive housing on a scale that fits our neighbourhoods and fills our community needs.

  • We can make effective tenancy protection bylaws.

  • We can make sure that affordable housing is truly affordable at less than 30% of income of fixed, lower, and middle income individuals and families.

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