XPost: bc.general, van.general   
   From: Panca@nyet.ca   
      
   The Globe and Mail - November 6, 2014   
      
      
   Spin control: Evaluating Robertson's pledge to eliminate homelessness   
      
      
   *  Mayor Gregor Robertson and his Vision party have made providing affordable   
   housing and eliminating homelessness top priorities, but NPA candidate Kirk   
   LaPointe has attacked him for failing to make progress.   
      
   When a tent city sprang up in Oppenheimer Park earlier this year, and the   
   street homeless numbers spiked to a new high of 1,798, it seemed to confirm   
   what the critics were saying about Vision's inability to substantively deal   
   with the homeless problem.   
      
   While Mr. Robertson says he still aims to eliminate street homelessness by   
   2015, he admits it is a chronic problem that "is an ongoing task," suggesting   
   it will always be an issue.   
      
   Since 2009, the city has opened new winter shelters that have helped 500 people   
   move into permanent housing and has secured funding for 1,500 new units of   
   low-income affordable housing, with 600 units opening this year.   
      
   The city has bought two Ramada Hotels and a Quality Inn to provide temporary   
   low-income housing and is converting the former Remand Centre in the Downtown   
   Eastside to provide 90 low-income units.   
      
   While Mr. Robertson has not yet achieved his goal of eliminating street   
   homelessness, he has been making a determined effort to do so.   
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   On the affordability front, steadily increasing housing prices have continued   
   to make Vancouver an extremely expensive place to be a home owner. In 2014   
   Demographia's survey of 130 housing markets named Vancouver as the second   
   least-affordable city in the world, behind Hong Kong.   
      
   A big part of the problem is that Vancouver is one of the most desirable places   
   in the world to live, which is steadily pushing up housing prices.   
      
   Mr. Robertson says he will ask developers to make one-third of the units in any   
   large projects family-oriented, and he has promised to create 4,000 new rental   
   units during the next four years.  But so far he has failed to reach his goal   
   of ensuring the city has enough affordable housing.   
      
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   *  Mr. Robertson has promised to make Vancouver the greenest city in the world   
   by 2020. He has provided an extensive bike path network, has battled the Trans   
   Mountain Pipeline Expansion project, has promised to plant 150,000 new trees   
   over the next six years and has pushed to improve energy efficiency.   
      
   But how close is Vancouver to achieving its greenest city goal?   
      
   Vancouver is ranked fourth in the recently released Global Green Economy Index,   
   which measures the sustainability accomplishments of 70 cities in 60 countries.   
     Only Copenhagen, Amsterdam and Stockholm rated higher.   
      
   GlobalPost, an online U.S. news company that focuses on international news, has   
   named Vancouver one of the six greenest cities in the world, without providing   
   a ranking order.   
      
   The Green City Index published by Siemens has ranked Canada number two in North   
   America, behind only San Francisco.   
      
   And Green Uptown, an online magazine that focuses on sustainable living,   
   recently listed Vancouver as "the number one greenest city in the world."   
      
   The magazine praised Vancouver for a city council that "works with the   
   residents in enacting sweeping changes in handling waste, ecosystem and carbon   
   management."   
      
   Last year a panel of judges from the United Nations Human Settlements Programme   
   and the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives named   
   Vancouver overall winner of its Best Green Building Policy category.   
      
   The biennial award, which recognizes excellence in sustainable city policies,   
   praised Vancouver's commitment to reduce energy use and greenhouse-gas   
   emissions by 20 per cent.   
      
   Although some rankings may be less than scientific, all agree the city is close   
   to the top, or is already there.   
   Mr. Robertson seems well on his way to delivering on his promise to make   
   Vancouver the greenest city in the world by 2020.   
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   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)