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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSPAC 2015-01-07 Minutes.pdfl~-mapleridge.ca City of Maple Ridge SOCIAL PLANNING ADVISORY COMMITTEE REGULAR MEETING The Minutes of the Regular Meeting of the Social Planning Advisory Committee, held in the Blaney Room, at Maple Ridge Municipal Hall on Wednesday, January 7, 2015 at 7:00 pm. COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT Steven Lamothe, Chair John McKenzie Annette Morgan Cpl. Alanna Dunlop Councillor Bob Masse lneke Boekhorst Bob Daley Josee Brazeau Candace Gordon Mana Bayanzadeh Vicki Kipps Pierre Welbedagt Councillor Shymkiw Jenny Tan Jassy Maghera Candace Gordon STAFF MEMBERS PRESENT Sue Wheeler Sunny Schiller REGRETS/ABSENTS Rajinder Kalra Stephanie Edige r Shawn Matthewson Ministry of Social Development & Social Innovation Community at Large Seniors Network Ridge-Meadows RCMP Council Liaison Downtown BIA / Friends in Need Community at Large Community at Large Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows-Katzie Community Network Fraser Health Community Network Member at Large Council Liaison Member at Large -Youth Representative Family Education & Support Centre Community Network Community Services Director Committee Clerk Community at Large Alouette Homestart Society Social Planning Coordinator / Staff Liaison 1. CALL TO ORDER AND INTRODUCTIONS There being a quorum present, the Chair called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. New members Councillor Shymkiw, Pierre Welbedagt and Jenny Tan were introduced. Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Minutes Page 1 of 5 ) Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Meeting Minutes January 7, 2015 2. AGENDA ADOPTION R15-001 It was moved and seconded 3. That the Agenda for the Regular Meeting of January 7, 2015 be adopted with the following deferrals: 5.2 SPAC Website Update 6.3 Integrated Response Team Update And the following amendment: 4.1 Healthy Communities Presentation -will be made by Mana Bayanzadeh, Community Health Specialist CARRIED MINUTE ADOPTION R15-002 It was moved and seconded ) That the Minutes of the November 19, 2014 Regular Meeting be adopted. CARRIED lneke Boekhorst and Candace Gordon entered the meeting at 7:08 pm. 4. DELEGATIONS 4.1 Healthy Communities -Mana Bayanzadeh, Fraser Health Mana Bayanzadeh, Community Health Specialist with Fraser Health, made a presentation titled "Healthy Living, Healthy Communities". Maple Ridge health statistics were reviewed and information on Fraser Health programs was provided. Healthy Communities related activities and initiatives in Maple Ridge were discussed. 5. NEW BUSINESS 5.1 2015 Chair and Co-Chair The Community Services Director notified the committee that elections for Chair and Vice-Chair will be held at the February meeting. A handout was provided outlining the duties of the positions. 5.2 SPAC Website Update -Deferred 5.3 2014 Child Poverty Report Card The Community Services Director gave an overview of the report card. 5.4 National Housing Survey Data Discussion It was explained that the National Housing Survey is a voluntary survey that is being used to generate data about Canadian households. It is replacing the Long Form Census. A planner from Vancouver did a presentation to the Metro Vancouver Social Issues Sub-Committee indicating that the quality of the data collected could be impacted due to the lack of diversity in responders. This change in data could have implications for municipal planning. The role that Maple Ridge can play in advocating for solutions to this issue will be discussed at a future meeting after the Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Minutes Page 2 of 5 Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Meeting Minutes January 7, 2015 Social Issues Sub-Committee formalizes their request for municipality's advocacy. 5.5 Moments to Milestones Film Debut The Community Services Director provided background on the Moments to Milestones movie that has been created by Fraser Health and the preview of the film that staff attended. The local Housing Planning Table is planning a showing of the film along with a discussion panel in the near future. SPAC will be kept informed. 5.6 Community Resource Fair Report The Community Services Directory reviewed the 2014 Community Resource Fair final report submission from the Community Network. SPAC provides a grant to the Community Network and their partners to host the resource fair which provides a good opportunity for organizations to both inform the community of the services available as well as for local agencies to meet each other and stay connected. 6. OLD BUSINESS 6.1 Homelessness Partnering Strategy (HPS) Funding Update 6.2 The Community Services Director informed the group that the selection of successful projects is complete but not yet published. The primary focus for this round of funding was a Housing First model and Maple Ridge did not obtain funding through the non-Housing First funding stream. As a result there will be a net loss of services that will have an impact on the community. Iron Horse Youth Safe House (IHYSH) Update The Community Services Director shared an update provided by Alouette Home Start Society on funding status for IHYSH. The group's contract with Service Canada ended on December 31, 2014 however, a plea to the community for support has resulted in excess of $25,000 in donations, enough to allow the program to operate for one more month. Local Tim Horton's owners pledged $12,500 in dollar matching funds to kick off the collection campaign. The safe house is currently full and the IHYSH board is working to keep the program operating for at least the month of January. The Community Services Director explained that Mayor Read continues to advocate on behalf of IHYSH to the provincial and federal governments. City staff will continue to work with Mayor Read and IHYSH to obtain funding. IHYSH was thanked for their hard work and contribution to the community. Candace Gordon praised the staff at IHYSH for all their hard work and commitment to the program during this time of uncertainty. 6.3 Integrated Response Team Update -Deferred 7. COMMITTEE REPORTS 7.1 Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows-Katzie Community Network (CN) Update Vicki Kipps explained the CN is a large group of organizations working to make a truly inclusive community. Ms. Kipps reported on the Community Chest program, which is a partnership between the CN and the Maple Ridge Community Foundation. This innovative program was designed to build momentum for a new way of giving Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Minutes Page 3 of 5 Social Planning Advisory Committee , Regular Meeting Minutes January 7, 2015 8. where no gift is too small and it is recognized that each contribution has the power to transform the life of both the recipient and the donor. This synergy is both a catalyst for change and a foundation for new connections and opportunities. The Community Chest offers support to individuals and families that are experiencing crisis and are in need of 'one time' assistance to strengthen their capacity to respond and react to change. Thirty-one cases were served during the successful one year pilot. The partners are working on plans for the new year. 7.2 Neighbourhood Development Update The Community Services Director gave a presentation on the Neighbourhood Development program. The program is designed to assist in identifying neighbourhood champions and provide opportunities for all champions to come together and connect, share ideas, and mentor each other. Eighty people attended the most recent meeting of champions and many incredible stories were shared. Highlights from 2014 were that a record number of fifty-three block parties were held across the community and that the new pilot program that provides matching funds for neighbourhoods that pledge their volunteer labor resulted in four innovative projects. Another Neighbourhood Development project is the Intergenerational Garden a project supported by three partners: the Seniors Network and Ridge Meadows Seniors Society, the School District, and Parks and Leisure Services. This garden has very successfully brought school children and teachers from two local schools together with together with commun ity members to learn about growing and harvesting produce. ROUNDTABLE Annette Morgan has recently completed an application for a provincial advisory group on seniors. The B.C. Seniors Advocate, Isobel Mackenzie, is seeking applicants for a council of advisers on seniors' issues and over four hundred applications have been received. The council, which will be made up of 25-30 volunteer seniors from around the province, will represent diverse backgrounds, ages, geographical areas and cultures. Vicki Kipps shared her positive experience with the Mobile Library Bus program. The library has an SUV that brings music and books out to the community to increase access to literacy. Ms. Kipps also reported on Alicia's Wish, a new initiative in our community which is the result of over two years of collaborative efforts by a multidisciplinary team. The Centre provides a centralized child/youth friendly wrap-around service for ch ildren and youth aged 18 years and younger who are victims of abuse and/or witness to violence, and their non- offending family members. Candace Gordon reported that during December the library accepted food bank donations in return for forgiveness of overdue book fines. Many organizations and businesses do a lot of their fundraising during the winter to support food security for the whole year. Ms. Gordon will be working with Mana Bayanzadeh from Fraser Health on a food security policy for Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows. Jassy Maghera outlined the work done by the Family Education and Support Centre to support newcomers to Canada. Data is being collected to create an asset map that will reflect information on immigrant populations to aid in the planning of service provision. Mana Bayanzadeh reported that Dr. Shovita Padhi will be the new local representative from Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Minutes Page 4 of 5 Social Planning Advisory Committee , Regular Meeting Minutes January 7, 2015 9. Fraser Health for Maple Ridge. CORRESPONDENCE-Nil 10. ADJOURNMENT -9:07 pm Next Meeting: Agenda Deadline: Location: Wednesday, February 4, 2015 Wednesday, January 21, 2015 Blaney Room, Maple Ridge Municipal Hall ~--- Ch air person /ss Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Minutes Page 5 of 5