B.C. government plans to transition supportive housing out of Granville Street, mayor says – BC [Video]

The provincial government has announced plans to transition supportive housing out of the Granville Street entertainment district, according to Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim.

This announcement comes after a fire broke out in a single-room occupancy building on the strip on Wednesday, leaving two people needing treatment for smoke inhalation.

The fire broke out in the former Howard Johnson hotel that now serves as a single-room accommodation housing facility.

The B.C. government bought the building at 1176 Granville in 2020, and controversially converted it to housing as it sought to shelter the city’s homeless during the COVID-19 pandemic quickly.

It has since generated thousands of emergency calls, with residents setting fires, pulling fire alarms and setting off the building’s sprinkler systems.

“We want to support the entire community, the business community, with our resources,” Vancouver Police Chief Steve Rai said at a press conference on Thursday.

“The resources are finite, and we have to be responsible with those resources. …