Our Sechelt Shelter moves to a Hostel

By Bill Briscall | December 22, 2017

The communities on the Sunshine Coast keep on giving and giving. Last month the owner of the Upper Deck Hostel offered the space (larger than the current shelter) as a shelter until permanent housing is built.It opened a week early due to the cold snap, so there’s still work to be done. But it feels …

Announcing our Clinical ICM Team! What does ICM mean, again?

By Bill Briscall | February 17, 2017

On April 1 RainCity will begin operating a Clinical Intensive Case Management (ICM) Team in Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows. This Housing First outreach team will assist people in locating places to live that are a little more affordable while building and maintaining relationships with landlords. There are 40 rent supplements that help ensure folks can …

A Peer’s Perspective in the Downtown Eastside

By Bill Briscall | November 16, 2016

RainCity Housing is excited to announce we are partnering with Vancouver Coastal Health to embed peers in nine care teams in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. The peers will be hired, managed and supported by us at RainCity and hired over the next few months. RainCity defines Peers as people who are representative of the diverse population …

3030 Gordon is OPEN!!

By Bill Briscall | December 18, 2015

All the rumors are true! Thanks to the amazing crew at Ventana Construction, the building was completed on time, which means that this week we were able to begin moving folks from the mat shelter currently set up at the Alliance Church directly into our shelter! The Tri-Cities News had a tour before we opened …

Are you a superhero?

By Bill Briscall | August 2, 2015

The theme for Vancouver’s Pride this year is Gender Superheroes and for the first time at RainCity, a specific program (both tenants and staff) put together our Parade entry – our LGBTQ2S* Housing for Youth! The amazing folks living at and involved in this project are inspiring, courageous, strong, and really, really funny; all the …

Vancouver’s DTES just got a little better.

By Bill Briscall | July 27, 2015

We are so excited to announce that women and families have begun moving into our newest building, the Budzey. Both unique to the Downtown Eastside and to RainCity Housing, the Budzey has 105 units of housing for women (trans* and cis), and 41 units for women led families. Below is a view of the north …

3030 Gordon Ave May 2015 Update!

By Bill Briscall | May 12, 2015

Welcome back! The official event in April went off without a hitch, and we just squeezed in all the speakers before the first train went by. Many guests came to show their support of the project, including all three Mayors from the Tri-Cities. Sean and Bill also presented a delegation to Port Moody Mayor and …

It’s now even easier to donate to RainCity!

By Bill Briscall | May 8, 2015

We’ve just launched our direct donation page and we really like it. Why? Because it’s not only super easy for you to use, but now each donation goes directly into our accounts on the same day! That means the money can make changes for folks faster than ever before. Plus, you’ll get your tax receipt …

Newsflash! How to learn about Housing First – and quick!

By Bill Briscall | November 3, 2014

It’s all right here! Well, actually right here, where today we’ve officially launched our ‘Housing First: Principles to Practice’ toolkit, a workshop that explains in nuanced ways what the Housing First model is and how it works. On that page you’ll find the five videos, each one explaining one of the five principles of Housing …

To house, or not to house – that is the question!

By Bill Briscall | October 14, 2014

A simple question. With complex and heartfelt answers. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Zlr3aXhozA The video clip above and the pictures below are to give you just a taste of the original, honest and at times hilarious production of ‘Much Ado About Something!’ You have not seen anything else like this before and you only have until October 16 – …