qathet Regional District director comments on rental crisis

qathet Regional District (qRD) director Mark Gisborne believes hardships recently raised by local renters could be partly alleviated by getting rid of single-unit zoning, and making it easier for residents to access low-cost housing options, such as fifth wheels and motorhomes.

Ultimately, however, Gisborne, who represents Electoral Area B, says the ongoing housing crisis is part of a series of systemic problems, and that there is no single solution.

Gisborne, who voted against the qathet Housing Needs Assessment Report in May, told the Peak that the crisis, locally and across the rest of North America, stems from 100 years of policy decisions that were designed to segregate people on low incomes, often because of systemic racism.

“The reason why I was opposed to the study was, it was very much written from that classical perspective of there’s not enough affordable housing, there’s a lot of people who are low income that we’re having a lot of difficult housing, so we need to find ways to create housing for them, and the easiest method is to build an affordable housing complex,” explained Gisborne. “That’s a problem.”

Gisborne said that, historically, public housing in North America accommodated people of all incomes, whereas “affordable” housing is means tested, meaning only people on low incomes are allowed to live there, cutting those people off from potential opportunities afforded by close proximity to neighbours from different economic backgrounds.

“This is a mentality that streamed across the border from the United States, economic segregation within your community, and a big part of that is the history of zoning bylaws,” said Gisborne. “I find it ironic that the province asks local government to solve the affordable housing issue, because that is like asking the mafia to solve organized crime. We’re the ones who did this.”

Gisborne believes if the province abolished R1 zoning, it would help municipalities densify, and said local governments should focus on “low cost” - rather than “affordable” - housing options. For example, he added, local governments should consider enabling low cost alternatives such as fifth wheels and motorhomes, particularly in rural settings.

Because the definition of “affordable” is based on one’s income, Gisborne said it introduces “a plethora of unique and complicated variables.”

“It’s relative,” said Gisborne. “So if suddenly your whole society’s income goes down, housing is unaffordable.”

Motorhomes, on the other hand, can be bought for very low costs, he added.

“If you were to buy a motorhome brand new, they’re expensive,” said Gisbone. “If you’re to buy one that’s over 10 years old, they’re dirt cheap.”

The problem, he explained, is that there is nowhere to put them.

Last month, the Peak spoke with two renters recently priced out of the local rental market, Margaret Gisle and Jennifer Rieper, who both said they had considered the option of buying and living in inexpensive motorhomes, but realized there was nowhere affordable for them to park such vehicles.

“$40 a night [at Willingdon Beach Campground in Powell River] is not affordable,” said Gisborne. “It is very expensive to park a rig there because it’s a supply and demand issue.”

Gisborne said he does not believe motorhome living is a silver-bullet solution to the housing crisis, and is more of an example that highlights larger, systemic problems. Nonetheless, he said he found living in a 20-foot motorhome in a backyard to be a cost-effective and secure form of housing while he was studying at university.

“I didn’t have roommates I had to deal with; I didn’t have a landlord coming in constantly,” he added. “It felt like it was mine, and if there was an issue, that’s on me, that’s my personal responsibility.”

Couple chooses RV lifestyle

Today, Gisborne rents out space on his farm, south of town, to Bonnie and John Mercer, who have lived in a motorhome on the property since 1997.

“We love it here,” said Bonnie. “We sold our house and we were travelling for six months, and when we came back we just decided we’re going to be RV living.”

Because the property is situated on an Agricultural Land Reserve, Bonnie and John help out around the farm. Bonnie said when they first moved to the property, the lot was, as Bonnie put it, a mud bath. But years of work have produced a beautiful garden.

“Every year I’ve been making it better and better, because I love gardening,” explained Bonnie. “To me, I treat this place like it’s ours. We don’t phone up the landlord every time and say this is wrong or that’s wrong. We just deal with it all ourselves.”

John said he thinks motorhome living makes a good alternative to trying to buy in the current market, in which property values are soaring.

“It would be a great solution to making instant housing, and then you can tow it anywhere you want, or if you have to change the layout of it, or put more in, it’s great,” said John. “Why would we want to buy a house now?”

Parking is problematic

Gisborne said motorhome owners just need somewhere to park.

“That’s something local government could facilitate: water, sewer, electrical,” he added. 

However, Gisborne said he believes local governments have a vested interest in not facilitating the creation of more lots for motorhome living.

“You can tax assessed permanent structures on the land, not a motorhome,” he explained. “So if you’ve got people living in motorhomes and fifth wheels, no property tax. So it’s no surprise that local governments have been, ‘no, we don’t want people living in motorhomes.’”

Similarly, said Gisborne, housing has, since the 1980s, shifted from being treated as a commodity to being treated as an investment, meaning there is an emphasis on protecting the investor, rather than the consumer. In turn, local governments have a vested interest in allowing land and property values to continue rising, because those factors increase tax revenue.

“Local government has that same vested interest of ‘we don’t really want to solve the problem, because it’s fixing other problems for us; it’s solving other issues,’” he added.

More broadly, Gisborne, aged 36, believes the absence of younger perspectives in local government is also an issue, particularly in regard to housing.

“That’s where I come running into butting heads. I’m like, hold on, I don’t live on waterfront property,” said Gisborne. “You hear, ‘oh just go out and get a job and buy a house.’ My response is: okay boomer. The expression (okay boomer) refers to: ‘I don’t have the time in my life to explain to you how out of date and out of touch that perspective is.’ That’s a big challenge right now, to get the millennial voice out there.”