May 23 - 28th, 2007

Social housing needs feds, province, city: Dion
All three levels of government must be partners on the issue of social housing, says federal Liberal leader Stephane Dion. Dion said in an interview that while the province has the main responsibility for building and providing social housing, Ottawa “will be there” not just as a provider of transfer payments. He was speaking following a discussion with representatives from Lower Mainland housing co-operatives about the issue at Pine Ridge Co-operative in the Forest Grove neighbourhood of Burnaby. Once the Liberals form a government they plan to create a strategy on how to deal with the need for social housing, largely based on similar discussions across the country, he said.

Draft charter calls for leap in housing density
Vancouver should put high-density housing next to its major parks and along every one of its major streets, suggests the first draft of Vancouver's ecodensity charter, released today. The city should also close down some roads to cars and require developers to include solar power, rainwater collection, and laundry drying facilities in any new project. The charter, which contains dozens of proposals, is intended to become a guiding document to transform Vancouver into a model of high-density living combined with cutting-edge environmental practices.

City gets128 newchild-care spaces
The provincial government has announced where 550 new child-care spaces are landing, and Saskatoon child-care providers have pinched a hearty piece of the pie. A total of 128 spaces were allocated within Saskatoon, while a combined total of 79 spaces were slated for Regina and Moose Jaw. At the announcement on Friday, Premier Lorne Calvert said the boost -- which was briefly outlined in the NDP's 2007-08 budget in March -- would make a "real difference" to Saskatchewan parents.

The little co-op that could
In a 40-year span, Nunavik's cooperative movement has grown from a log-hewn co-op store in George River and the tiny association of Puvirnitumiut Katujjuiyut Immiguutut (the people of Puvirnituq working for themselves) to a multi-million dollar commercial enterprise. Last weekend, the Fédération des cooperatives du Nouveau-Québec celebrated its 1967 establishment as a cooperative association with a banquet at the Château Vaudreuil, a posh lakeside hotel near Montreal.