{"id":79,"date":"2014-06-13T19:40:15","date_gmt":"2014-06-13T19:40:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/geography\/?post_type=chapter&p=79"},"modified":"2014-09-03T15:48:07","modified_gmt":"2014-09-03T22:48:07","slug":"3-3-case-studies","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/geography\/chapter\/3-3-case-studies\/","title":{"raw":"Case Study 1: Victoria and Williams Lake","rendered":"Case Study 1: Victoria and Williams Lake"},"content":{"raw":"This case study on homelessness focuses on BC's capital, Victoria, and on the interior city of Williams Lake.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_74\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"400\"]\"Figure<\/a> Figure 2.1. Locations of Victoria and Williams Lake[\/caption]\r\n

Victoria<\/h2>\r\nVictoria, the capital of BC, is located on the southern tip of Vancouver Island.\u00a0The city's population stands at approximately 83,000 but serves as a hub for a regional population of 360,000.\u00a0Known as the \"City of Gardens,\" Victoria is an attractive,\u00a0popular tourist destination with a thriving technology sector, which\u00a0has risen to be the city's\u00a0largest revenue-generating private industry.\u00a0The city's other main industries are\u00a0food products, tourism, education, and federal and provincial government administration and services.\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\nDespite Victoria's reputation as a tourist destination, homelessness is a serious problem in the downtown area, as is drug use.\u00a0The first homeless count in Victoria took place in\u00a0January 2005, and was carried out as part of a volunteer study by the\u00a0Victoria Cool Aid Society. That first count totalled\u00a0approximately 700 individuals, with 50% of those people identifying themselves as being of\u00a0First Nations origin \u00a0(Homeless Count \u2013 2005 Victoria, BC Cool Aid Society).\u00a0The number of homeless people increased dramatically with the anticipated tourism boom of the 2010 Winter Olympics.\r\n

Williams Lake<\/h2>\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_75\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"400\"]\"Figure<\/a> Figure 2.2 Cariboo Regional District showing location of Williams Lake (click for larger)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nWilliams Lake, is a city in the\u00a0central interior\u00a0of\u00a0BC. Located in the region known as the Cariboo, it is the largest urban centre between\u00a0Kamloops< and\u00a0Prince George, with a population of 11,150 in the city limits.\u00a0The primary industries in Williams Lake are\u00a0forestry, logging, milling,\u00a0mining\u00a0and\u00a0ranching. Williams Lake is best known for the Williams Lake Stampede. This event, held annually\u00a0on a weekend on or around\u00a0Canada Day,\u00a0features\u00a0Canadian Professional Rodeo Association\u00a0action including\u00a0bull riding,\u00a0barrel racing,\u00a0bareback\u00a0riding,\u00a0tie-down roping,\u00a0steer wrestling,\u00a0team roping\u00a0and chuck wagon\u00a0races.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_76\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"400\"]\"Figure<\/a> Figure 2.3 Stampede at Williams Lake BC[\/caption]\r\n\r\nThe indigenous ethnic makeup of Williams Lake makes it an interesting case study in terms of quality of life and homelessness. The Cariboo\u2010Chilcotin\u00a0ethnic makeup, of which Williams Lake is a part of, is vastly different from the rest of BC. In the whole of BC, the Aboriginal population is 4.8%, whereas as in Cariboo\u2010Chilcotin, it is 16.3%. The majority of First Nations people live on the 15 Secwepemc, Carrier and Tsilhqot\u2019in\u00a0communities in the area, but a growing number are choosing to live in Williams Lake. Census Canada 2011\u00a0figures suggest that the Aboriginal population in Williams Lake increased by approximately 130% between 1991 and 2011. Data from 2005 illustrate the difference in income between the Aboriginal population, other visible minorities and non-visible minorities.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_77\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"400\"]\"Figure<\/a> Figure 2.4 2005 Williams Lake Median income by ethnic group by Hilda Anggraeni adapted from Statistics Canada, 2007[\/caption]\r\n\r\nLabour force participation rates\u00a0have declined over the past five census periods\u00a0with\u00a0the collapse of the forestry industry in the area, partially caused by the\u00a0mountain pine beetle infestation. Commuting patterns suggest that most Williams Lake residents leave the city to find\u00a0employment, especially male residents, some of whom commute as far away as Alberta.\r\n\r\nAccording to Census Canada 2011, Williams Lake has a high proportion of renters in the region, who are\u00a0regarded as an at-risk vulnerable group for living in poverty due to uncertain income and rising costs. In fact,\u00a038% of renters in Williams Lake spent 30% of their income on rent compared with 13% by homeowners.\r\n

Attributions<\/h2>\r\n