Would you ask Premier Gordon Campbell's campaign manager for an objective analysis and evaluation on his government? Of course not, yet... This is exactly how the City of Vancouver is going to monitor and measure outcomes at RainCity Housing's Fraser St. supportive housing for mentally ill drug addicts.
Here's how City Hall is going to "monitor" Fraser St.
"Protocols for the annual monitoring and reporting of outcomes associated with the services both RainCity Housing and VCHA provide to the satisfaction of the Directors of the Housing Centre and Social Planning [of the City of Vancouver]. 1
Conflict of Interest
The Directors of the Housing Centre and Social Planning are "campaign managers" for the Fraser St. project. How can they possibly act as independent objective analysts to judge whether Fraser St. is a success or not? These very same Vancouver City Hall bureaucrats are campaigning and lobbying for this very supportive housing. How can they be expected to analyze the results without bias?
They can't. It is a huge conflict of interest.
City Hall bureaucrats should not be responsible for defining success or measuring outcomes on drug addict supportive housing at Fraser St. as they have a vested interest in the production and appearance of good results.
Mayor and Council and City Hall bureaucrats have ignored the plethora of medical evidence and science which show there are no effective community based treatments for mentally ill drug addicts. (Learn more ») Yet, City Hall bureaucrats continue to lobby for more supportive housing without any shred of evidence of its effectiveness. And worse, the Mayor and Council have assigned the very same City Hall bureaucrats to decide whether or not Fraser St. is a solution.
How can the Mayor and Council expect anyone in Vancouver to believe any reported outcomes of "successes" at Fraser St. without independent monitoring, measuring and reporting? (Learn more »)
Here's what Fraser St. is estimated to cost taxpayers to operate since it opened August 1, 2007 - $$$$$ 2 - and the City wants to build at least a dozen more throughout Vancouver family neighbourhoods!
Published August 17, 2007.