Renting and buying homes has changed a lot in the last few years. Prices have shot up, folks are moving on and off the Island, and people who have lived here their whole lives are having trouble finding a place to live.
It’s hard to keep up with the changes and with how folks are living. But the Campbell River Coalition to End Homelessness and the Urban Indigenous Housing and Wellness Coalition are trying to change that.
The two organizations have teamed up to learn more about how folks live in the Strathcona District. And they need your help.
They’re running a survey with questions about you, how you live, and what you need to live a healthy life.
There are so many surveys, why is this one important?
Yep, it’s true. There are a lot of surveys. But there are a lot of gaps in our housing data, too.
Surveys of absolute homelessness can tell us a lot about folks who are living without shelter. But they can’t tell us much about folks who struggle to find places to rent.
The Canadian census takes a snapshot of who owns houses and who rents. But Statistics Canada can’t tell you whether someone who owns their house has enough money to make repairs. And they can’t tell you whether that house meets the family’s needs.
And they don’t say if you have access to other things you need, like grocery stores, emergency services, and health care.
Also, folks need different things from their housing. Maybe you live in an RV and that’s the perfect life for you. Or maybe you live in an RV because you can’t find a house or apartment that works with your budget.
That’s the kind of information the survey hopes to get. These are the gaps the survey aims to fill in.
But why even fill these gaps?
It’s hard to plan what to build if we don’t know what kinds of housing people need. And we won’t know what people need unless we hear it from you.
Surveying an entire district with a small team is a challenge. But it’s worth the effort to get to know people better. Because when we can sort out good housing for people, we can build the rest of the stuff you need to live a healthy life.
So make a cup of tea, find a comfy seat, and tell the survey team a bit about yourself.
The survey closes on May 11th.
