by Sean Orr | Affordable rents shrinking by the year in Downtown Eastside: report. Gentrification is real, but it can be mitigated. As I’ve said time and time again (and as this article says), “The basic welfare rate is $610 per month — a figure that hasn’t changed in 10 years”. And that tragedy, to me, makes the following statement moot: “Research shows gentrification displaces people to other communities where they don’t have the services they depend on”. Also, it’s pretty disingenuous to say that the DTES doesn’t have the services “they” depend on.

On the flip-side: Smokers causing tension at 6th and Commercial. This is interesting to me because Black Smokers have been said to be the origins of life itself. OK, sorry. That was bad, so here’s Shawnee Hummel‘s take:

Hi, I’m a bigot and walking past you makes me feel unsafe. Y’know, ’cause you’ve never done anything to me or anyone that I know and from what I understand you’ve formed a bit of a community around these parts. I don’t think that’s cool. I think it’s threatening. I recently moved here and when I walked by the coffee shop on the way to view my future (overpriced) dwelling I figured you’d all be gone by the time I moved in. But fuck, you’re still there. Well, I won’t accept it”.

Navel gazing: How Vancouver Invented Itself. Maybe we did too good of a job. Mentioned: Greenpeace, view corridors, bike lanes, and a lack of freeways. Not mentioned: the cost of living.

Which leads to the Tweet of the Day from the inimitable Charles Demers:

Just drove past a real estate sign and mistook the phone number for the price.

— Charles Demers (@charliedemers) February 18, 2014

Related: In World’s Best-Run Economy, House Prices Keep Falling — Because That’s What House Prices Are Supposed To Do.

Meanwhile, in Abbotsfail: Abbotsford Says No To Homeless Housing. Chalk one up for the Mennomafia.

West End clinic applies to become North America’s second legal supervised injection facility. Keep in mind that it already exists. They just want to make it legal.

Crafty: Downtown Eastside program offers mix of home brew and helping hand. “Alcohol-making co-op part of harm reduction strategy for severe drinkers”. I want to make some joke along the lines of “Oh, cool can I participate?” but that would be totally dumb and insensitive.

Bonus: That awkward moment when your shirt is supposed to say “Canada” in the photo but says something really suggestive instead.