In Squamish, not everyone gets the chance to build a stable life. Some of us, like me, live in vans or tents—not by choice, but because we’ve run out of options. Homelessness is not a lifestyle decision. It’s the result of trauma, job loss, health issues, or a lack of affordable housing. No one plans for their life to unravel.
When local housing initiatives like the Under One Roof program or the supportive housing project at Government Road and Centennial Way come under fire, we need to ask ourselves: are we truly seeing the people affected, or just reacting to fear?
Programs like Under One Roof, run by Squamish Helping Hands, offer more than shelter. They provide hot meals, showers, medical support, and a safe place to rest. These are not handouts—they are lifelines. For people like me and many others in our town, these programs are the only buffer between survival and crisis.
Opposition often comes dressed in language like “concern for property values” or “safety,” but these fears rarely reflect reality. In fact, numerous studies show that supportive housing does not increase crime and often leads to safer communities by reducing instability.
When we claim shelters “hurt neighbourhoods,” what we’re often really saying is: “I don’t want to be reminded of suffering.” But homelessness doesn’t disappear when we ignore it—it grows. Judging an entire group by a few negative stories is a dangerous generalization that undermines real progress.
Homelessness exists in Squamish. It’s not an urban problem we can blame on Vancouver. It’s here, it’s growing, and ignoring it won’t make it go away. We need to stop calling the police when someone is having a hard day and start listening instead. Compassion is not weakness—it’s courage in action.
Supportive housing is not charity. It’s justice. It gives people a chance to rebuild, regain dignity, and rejoin the fabric of the community. The project at Government Road isn’t just about construction—it’s a moral statement about what kind of town Squamish wants to be.
Will we let fear decide who deserves help—or will we build a town rooted in kindness and resilience?
Let’s stop debating whether people are “worthy” of housing. Everyone deserves a foundation. And if we won’t build that foundation together, then we all live on shaky ground.
Jeff Maxwell
Downtown Squamish
