'Pressure' of housing costs

The housing spectrum is the topic everyone can relate to, but fewer people can keep up to.

It’s something that one small business owner in downtown Penticton said has a ripple effect for people with modestly-paying jobs.

"It hurts us all in terms of a business like mine. My ability to recruit and retain employees and what they can afford to live on," Jason Cox said, owner of The People's Soda Co. on Winnipeg Street.

On Tuesday night, Cox hosted an event for an intimate group to discuss their personal stories and opinions on the current state of housing and how people may be affected.

"What does (the housing spectrum) really mean? It means everything from homelessness and social housing, to the affordability of a rental market, to the affordability of purchasing a home," he said.

"That's what we're looking to do (here) is have that conversation — identify what the issues are and what to do about them. Not just a complaint session, but more of an idea-generation." 

Cox said he thinks the City of Penticton has created more affordable options in the past year, specifically by approving units dedicated for renting and for transitional housing.

But he said many people still aren’t sheltered from an “upward pressure” that the high cost of living creates, which he pointed out is much more than a local issue.

"People are under a lot of pressure financially just to live here," he said.

"I think we could be doing more to focus that discussion... And identify what the need is and how we're going to meet it. Not only from a municipal level, but also with the help of our partners at BC Housing, the province and the federal government as well."