Housing Policy Update

Letter to Members April 2024

To continue the proud tradition of building homes on our land and meet the Nation’s strategic vision of housing every Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Member within a generation, Nexwsxwníw̓ntm ta Úxwumixw (Council) requested that the Housing Policy be updated.

Staff from Ta na wa Shéway I7x̱w ta Úxwumixw (Planning & Capital Projects), Ts’ixwts’ixwnítway (Member Services), Nexwsp’áyaḵen ta Úxuwmixw (Community Operations), Ta na wa Ch’áwat ta Sx̱wéx̱wel (Squamish Valley Operations), Wa Ns7eyx̱ ta Temíxw (Community Lands), and Hiy̓ám̓ Housing are working together on this important project.

The Project Team can be reached at housingpolicy@squamish.net or 604-904-7474.

Huy chexw a (thank you) to those Members who expressed interest in joining the Housing Policy Community Working Group. The following were selected to represent different demographics including on- and off-reserve, Squamish Valley and North Vancouver, those with a house and without, as well as various age groups. The group held their first meeting on October 12, 2022 and met biweekly until February 2023 before shifting to monthly meetings.

Amy Baker (Off-reserve, North Vancouver, Adult)
Glen Campo (Off-reserve, Langley, Elder)
Becky Findlay (On-reserve, North Vancouver, Adult)
Andrea Jacobs (On-reserve, North Vancouver, Elder)
Uxwáluút, Jessica Natrall (On-reserve, North Vancouver, Adult)
Lats-mat, Mary Jane Natrall (On-reserve, Squamish Valley, Elder)
Jenna Vocal (Off-reserve, North Vancouver, Adult)
Yususult, Rosemarie Williams (On-reserve, Squamish Valley, Adult)

Allocations Policy

Work is underway to create an Allocations Policy. Nexwsxwníw̓ntm ta Úxwumixw (Council) has directed staff to make updates that focus on on the policy’s administration. It will not include changes to the allocation categories.

The goal is to:

  • Increase clarity, by reviewing the provisions in the policy that are open to interpretation or create confusion.
  • Increase transparency, by providing Members with clear and timely information about how the policy works, the status of Housing List and how it is maintained, and upcoming allocations.
  • Improve consistency, by strengthening procedures for maintaining the Housing List and making allocations decisions that are consistent with the policy.

To assist in this work, opportunities for community engagement will be announced shortly.

It is also important to note that the Allocations Policy does not determine the number of allocations that are made in any given year. That decision is made by Nexwsxwníw̓ntm ta Úxwumixw based on the number of serviced lots that are available (which is dependent on infrastructure funding from Indigenous Services Canada).

Project Progress

A number of engagement activities and opportunities for Members to provide feedback took place throughout 2022.

  • In January, a Housing History Timeline brochure was mailed to all households.
  • Two online community meetings were held in February. A Housing Q&A booklet was prepared based on the questions raised during those meetings. It was sent to all households.
  • The Project Team attended the Department Open Houses in May 2022 to gather input on various housing questions.
  • A Housing Policy survey was conducted in June and received over 130 responses.
  • In July, key Members who have expertise in different areas related to the Housing Policy were interviewed.
  • During the Amalgamation Day celebration, Members were invited to complete an interactive Housing Policy questionnaire.

As Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw honors the teachings of the past and shows respect to the ancestors by upholding their words, feedback from previous engagements was also considered:

The feedback has been woven into the Housing Policy Community Engagement Report 2022. It quickly became clear that a single Housing Policy could no longer incorporate all the updates required. Therefore, it was decided to create 13 individual policies divided by topic and guided by one overarching Housing Policy Framework. This is a significant amount of work and needs to take place in phases.