Port Moody backs Indigenous housing resolution headed to UBCM

Port Moody council has unanimously endorsed a resolution from the Aboriginal Housing Management Association (AHMA) calling on the province to establish an Indigenous-led housing alliance aimed at tackling homelessness and housing instability for Indigenous people living off-reserve.

The motion was approved March 10 following a delegation from AHMA communications and justice studies staffer, Kelly Moon, who asked the city to support the proposal as it advances toward the 2026 Union of B.C. Municipalities (UBCM) convention.

The resolution urges the province to create an Indigenous-led, cross-sector housing alliance bringing together senior representatives from housing, health, justice, and social services, alongside Indigenous housing providers and municipalities.

Moon told council AHMA’s members already play a major role in providing housing across the province, but are struggling to keep pace with rising costs and shrinking funding streams.

“AHMA members are holding back the floodgates,” Moon said. “Some of them are thinking about selling their assets because they can’t pay basic bills, can’t afford to support the residents they serve appropriately, or can’t pay staff with the expertise required to support increasingly complex needs.”

For three decades, AHMA has been the only provincial organization dedicated to addressing the housing needs of non-status Indigenous peoples living off-reserve. It represents 55 housing providers managing roughly 95 percent of Indigenous housing units located in municipalities across the province, collectively serving more than 10,000 Indigenous people.

Moon said the need for coordinated action is particularly urgent because most Indigenous people in B.C. live outside of reserve communities and therefore do not benefit from many federal housing programs.

“Approximately 74 percent of Indigenous people in B.C. don’t live on reserve and are therefore not supported through the federal funding programs that go to distinctions-based First Nations and on-reserve activities,” she said.

AHMA members are already operating housing in Port Moody and nearby communities, including projects run by the M’akola Housing Society, Moon added.

However, she said many providers are now facing severe financial pressures.

“Uncontrollable costs have been consistently rising anywhere from 15 to 25 percent, but our members have not had a budget increase of more than two percent in five years,” Moon said. “You can imagine the struggle.”

Those pressures could ultimately spill over into municipalities if Indigenous housing providers are forced to scale back services, she warned.

The need is particularly visible in the Tri-Cities, Indigenous residents account for 33 percent of the homeless population, despite only representing four percent of the total population.

AHMA argues that investing in housing solutions also provides measurable economic benefits, citing research suggesting every dollar spent on supportive housing can generate nearly $7 in social return and up to $3 dollars in government savings through reduced demand on emergency and social services.

Coun. Diana Dilworth, a former BC Housing employee, said she had previously worked with AHMA and the M’akola Housing Society and supported advancing the resolution.

She asked Moon for an update on efforts to secure broader federal support for Indigenous housing.

Moon said several projects have recently stalled after the province pulled back funding from the Community Housing Fund and Indigenous Housing Fund.

“As a result we have over 20 deferred projects,” she said. “It’s really quite devastating for a lot of Indigenous housing and service providers who have put significant investment into pre-development preparations, and now those projects are not moving forward.”

AHMA is now attempting to shift those projects into potential federal funding streams, including applications to the federal government’s Build Canada Homes initiative.

Coun. Haven Lurbiecki said the proposed alliance reflects the kind of coordinated approach needed to address housing challenges faced by urban Indigenous populations.

“A lot of people might not realize that many Indigenous people are living in urban areas, not on reserve,” she said. “This division of funding and services creates silos and challenges for supporting Indigenous communities across the province.”

Coun. Kyla Knowles said she was troubled by the number of housing projects being cancelled despite significant investment in planning and design.

“I would be lying if I said I wasn’t devastated hearing how many housing projects . . . have been cancelled despite hundreds of thousands to millions being put towards planning, development and architecture,” she said.

Following the discussion, council agreed to immediately consider the delegation request and voted unanimously to support AHMA’s resolution heading to UBCM.

Moon said the organization is seeking municipal “champions” across B.C. to help push the proposal forward.

“We want to speak as one voice,” she said. “AHMA and our members are in a position to take the lead, but we need your help to advocate for urban Indigenous housing in your communities.”