Cost to taxpayers growing as Granville SRO remains open for 1 resident

Taxpayers in British Columbia are still footing the bill to keep a single-room occupancy (SRO) building open for a single resident. The Luugat, a 110-unit building on Granville Street, remains operational past mid-August, incurring costs estimated to exceed $150,000 since July 1.

Ryan Donnelly, the sole remaining resident, was unavailable for comment on Monday. The B.C. government had pledged to close the Luugat by the end of June. While Donnelly has reportedly been offered new housing, he previously stated that his seizure disorder requires a large room and a building equipped with an elevator, conditions he has not yet found.

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And they refuse to change. That's one of the big things that has to happen in B.C. It's happening elsewhere. Any European country or city that has tackled a severe addiction problem didn’t group all the people together with minimal supports and call it a day. That just hasn’t worked.

Clinical psychologist Julian Somers described the province's SRO model as a "disaster." He argued that grouping individuals with minimal support is an ineffective approach to tackling severe addiction problems, a strategy he noted has failed in B.C. and is not used by European cities that have addressed similar issues.

There is currently no timeline for when the Luugat will officially close. B.C.'s Housing Minister Christine Boyle acknowledged the situation is "not ideal" and expressed optimism that a resolution is near, with efforts underway to find a suitable option for Donnelly. However, some residents, like Lorne Caron, view the continued operation as a "waste of taxpayer money" and criticize the provincial government's financial management.

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That’s just a waste of taxpayer money. There’s no financial responsibility, it seems, with this NDP government.