Richmond council votes to extend supportive housing complex Aster Place for three more years

Richmond city council voted 6-2 on Monday to extend the lease of Aster Place, a 40-unit low-barrier housing complex, for another three years through spring 2030.

The temporary modular building opened on Smith Street north of Bridgeport Road in 2022, with BC Housing's original lease set to end in spring 2027. After a four-hour public hearing featuring about 25 speakers—some for, some against—council decided to keep it open while asking staff to review the memorandum of understanding between BC Housing and the city to strengthen operations and add more resident programs.

Opponents raised concerns about social disorder and increased emergency service calls to the area since Aster Place opened. Gary Law, running for city council with the Advance Richmond political group, questioned whether council had evidence on the facility's performance, including police, fire, and ambulance call data. "Most importantly, what benchmarks are being used to determine if this operation is successful," he asked.

Councillors Alexa Loo and Kash Heed, both running for mayor in the fall election, voted against the extension. Loo asked whether the facility could be "drug free," though BC Housing said that would require new tenancy agreements. Julie Roberts, executive director of operator Community Builders, said drug use was among a "minority" of residents.

Speaker Millie Yee told council that displacing the 40 residents wasn't the solution. "Taking down one site does not make homelessness, addictions or mental-health challenges just disappear," she said. "It only makes those problems more rampant in our community."