One of the greatest feelings of accomplishment for veteran Councillor Judy Villeneuve has been to see Surrey establish a Homelessness and Housing Foundation with a $9 million endowment
“We were the first city to take this approach and it represents a commitment to ensure that the most vulnerable in our community are not forgotten.”, stated Villeneuve. The initiative is having an impact, over the past two years outreach workers have placed 356 homeless in permanent housing.
Said Watts, “It is easy to criticize other levels of government for not doing enough, but in Surrey we just decided we would find a solution that would work for our community.”
Both Watts and Villeneuve were also pleased to see work commence on the new 94-bed Sobering Centre in Surrey, the first of its kind in the region, that will provide an entrance point to rehabilitation and new beds for people with addictions.