VULTURE CAPITALI$M

U.S. to Back Puerto Rico Law, Slowing Plan to Restructure Debt

Michelle Kaske and Steven Church
Fri, January 7, 2022



(Bloomberg) -- The U.S. Department of Justice said on Friday that it will intervene in Puerto Rico’s four-year bankruptcy case to defend a federal law that gave the island the ability to cut its obligations through the courts.

The move, intended to stave off challenges that the bankruptcy is unconstitutional, may actually prolong the commonwealth’s efforts to restructure its $33 billion of debt and exit court oversight. The bankruptcy is the largest ever in the $4 trillion municipal-bond market.

While a majority of Puerto Rico’s creditors have endorsed the restructuring plan, an individual bondholder and two real estate companies allege that Promesa, as the federal bankruptcy law is known, violates the U.S. Constitution.

Their legal action is likely to amount to a technical hurdle that will merely delay the bankruptcy’s resolution, unless U.S. District Court Judge Laura Taylor Swain agrees with the holdouts. That would upend Puerto Rico’s bankruptcy, which has already been delayed by hurricanes, earthquakes and the coronavirus pandemic.

Puerto Rico’s debt plan is the result of years of negotiations between various and sometimes conflicting bondholder classes, insurance companies and labor groups. Those creditors have agreed to the debt plan and haven’t questioned Promesa’s legality. Congress passed Promesa in 2016 to help resolve the island’s financial crisis.

Defending Promesa

“The U.S. respectfully notifies the court and the parties that the U.S. will participate in the above-captioned proceeding for the purpose of defending the constitutionality of Promesa as it applies to the proposed approval of the plan of adjustment,” Brian Boynton, acting assistant attorney general, wrote in the notice of participation filed to the court Friday.

DOJ’s decision to intervene is expected to delay Swain’s ruling on a restructuring plan that would include cutting $22 billion of bonds down to $7.4 billion. Confirmation hearings on that debt plan ended Nov. 23. Swain that month gave the federal government a Feb. 7 deadline to file a brief, if the DOJ chose to defend Promesa.

Puerto Rico has been in bankruptcy since May 2017 after years of borrowing to paper over budget deficits, economic decline and population loss.

Bondholders who support the plan may have the right to pull out of their deal if the reorganization plan is not consummated by Jan. 31, according to court records. This means bondholders will have to decide whether to terminate their agreement and possibly demand a termination fee.

Whole Foods Claims Constitutional Right to Disallow ‘Black Lives Matter’ Masks

Josh Eidelson
Fri, January 7, 2022




(Bloomberg) -- U.S. labor board prosecutors are trying to violate Whole Foods Market’s copyright and constitutional rights by forcing it to let employees wear “Black Lives Matter” masks at work, the Amazon.com Inc. subsidiary claims.

In a Dec. 17 filing with the National Labor Relations Board, Whole Foods denied the agency general counsel’s allegations that the company violated federal labor law by banning employees from wearing “Black Lives Matter” insignia and punishing staff around the country who did. The filing is a response to the labor board’s accusation that by prohibiting Black Lives Matter messages at work, the company interfered with employees’ rights under the National Labor Relations Act to engage “in concerted activities for their mutual aid and protection.”

Whole Foods counters that it’s the one whose rights are being violated. The company’s filing, obtained via a Freedom of Information Act request, accuses the labor board’s general counsel, Jennifer Abruzzo, of trying to unconstitutionally “compel” speech by Whole Foods in violation of its First Amendment rights. The upscale grocer also accuses her of “unlawfully infringing upon and/or diluting WFM’s protected trademarks” by trying to mandate that it allow the display of a “political message in conjunction with” its trademarked uniforms and logos.

Whole Foods contends that Section 7 of the NLRA, which protects employees’ right to take collective action related to working conditions, doesn’t extend to workers’ BLM messages, which it calls “political and/or social justice speech.” The company’s filing argues that “BLM” and related phrases “are not objectively understood to relate to workplace issues or improving working conditions at WFM’s retail grocery stores” or employment terms and conditions in general. “Employees do not have a protected right under Section 7 of the Act to display the phrase ‘Black Lives Matter’ or ‘BLM’ in the workplace,” the company’s attorneys wrote.

A Whole Foods spokesperson declined to comment Friday on the filing. The company said last month that its dress code policy doesn’t single out specific slogans but prohibits any messages unrelated to its business. The case is slated to be heard by an agency judge at a trial in March.

Abruzzo, appointed by President Joe Biden, has argued that “racial justice advocacy” by workers such as displaying a BLM slogan at work falls squarely within the scope of what she called the “group action to improve their lot as employees” that the 1935 labor law protects. “The employer certainly can control whether people of color get harassed and discriminated against at their workplace,” she said in an interview last month. Workers, Abruzzo argued, can say, “We’re about a broader movement. But that broader movement flows into our smaller workplace universe.”

Starbucks Arizona Union Election Ordered by U.S. Labor Board


Josh Eidelson
Fri, January 7, 2022



(Bloomberg) -- A U.S. labor official granted a request by Arizona workers at Starbucks Corp. to hold an election that could expand the new unionized foothold at the retail coffee chain, rejecting the company’s arguments against holding store-by-store votes.

In a Friday ruling, the National Labor Relations Board’s regional director ordered that ballots be mailed out Jan. 14 to employees at a store in Mesa, Arizona, who will have until Jan. 28th to return them.

The regional director wrote that “given the lack of centralized control and employee interchange” among stores, the labor board didn’t need to depart from its standard position that the employees of a single worksite constitute an appropriate voter pool for a union election.

The ruling follows a landmark labor victory last month in which Starbucks employees in New York voted to establish the sole unionized restaurant among the coffee chain’s thousands of corporate-run U.S. sites. Since then, employees in cities including Boston, Chicago, Knoxville, Tennessee, and Starbucks’ hometown of Seattle all have petitioned to unionize with the same labor group as the New York and Arizona workers, the Service Employees International Union affiliate Workers United.

When asked about the Friday ruling, a Starbucks spokesperson referenced a December letter to employees in which the company’s North America president Rossann Williams reiterated that “we do not want a union between us as partners,” but that “we respect the legal process,” and “will bargain in good faith” at the New York store where workers voted to unionize.

“We hope to be able to speak with the company with an even playing field, have the chance for them to actually hear us partner to partner,” said Mesa Starbucks employee Michelle Hejduk, a leader in the union campaign. “We’ve worked really hard on this and we’re still standing strong.”

The union has petitioned to overturn its loss at a second New York store over alleged misconduct, while results at a third hinge on voter eligibility disputes.

Employees at the newly unionized New York store have been mounting a strike since Wednesday over what they say are insufficient Covid-19 safeguards and staffing. Starbucks has said it exceeds guidelines from experts and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

(Updates with company statement, comment by Mesa employee)

New York State Considers the First Fashion Sustainability Law in the U.S.

Todd Woody
Fri, January 7, 2022, 

(Bloomberg) -- New York would become the first state in the nation to require global fashion brands to disclose their climate and social impacts and take action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions under a bill introduced in the state legislature.

If passed and signed into law, the Fashion Sustainability and Social Accountability Act would apply to Armani, LVMH, Nike and other apparel companies with more than $100 million in annual worldwide revenues that do business in New York. Companies that fail to comply with the law may be fined up to 2% of revenues of $450 million or more, according to the legislation.

The fashion industry accounts for up to 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions, according to the United Nations.

The bill was introduced in October and referred to a legislative committee on Wednesday. It requires apparel companies to map at least 50% of their suppliers by volume, identifying adverse impacts from greenhouse gas emissions and water and chemical use. Companies would have to set targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption across their supply chains. They would also be required to disclose how much and what type of materials their suppliers produce annually and the volume of recycled materials used.

Fashion companies would have to report the wages paid by their suppliers and how that pay compares to local minimum wages and living wages.

Companies must publish the disclosures on their websites and the state attorney general must release an annual report identifying companies found to be in violation of the law. Citizens would be allowed to file civil legal actions to compel compliance with the legislation.

Fines levied against apparel companies would go into a new community benefit fund that would be used to support environmental justice projects.

GREEN CAPITALI$M
Blackstone Invests $3 Billion in Invenergy for Clean Energy


Heather Perlberg
Fri, January 7, 2022, 



(Bloomberg) -- Blackstone Inc. is adding to its bets on sustainability and climate change, with a $3 billion investment in clean energy and infrastructure-focused Invenergy.

Blackstone’s infrastructure group will take a minority stake in the renewable energy developer, with Invenergy and Canadian pension fund Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec remaining the majority owners of the business.

“Blackstone is committed to investing behind the energy transition and we are excited to partner with Invenergy, which is the clear independent leader in the renewable energy sector,” Sean Klimczak, global head of infrastructure at Blackstone, said in an email.

The largest investors are increasingly focused on sustainability. Four-fifths of investment decisions either always or often incorporate climate risk, according to a survey published by Aviva Investors last year.

Blackstone, the world’s largest alternative-asset manager, has committed almost $13 billion to investments that aim to support a transition to cleaner energy since 2019.

The firm has invested in energy-storage provider Aypa Power and last year announced plans to buy energy-infrastructure company Sabre Industries. It also announced a plan in 2020 to reduce carbon emissions by 15% across new investments where the firm is in control over energy use within the first three years of ownership.

Invenergy is one of the largest independent renewable developers in the U.S. The company focuses on partnerships with utilities, financial institutions and commercial and industrial customers. Its projects have offset approximately 167 million tons of carbon dioxide and the company is currently building the largest wind and solar projects in the country, according to Invenergy.

Lazard Ltd. and CIBC advised Blackstone on the deal.

Omicron: Natural immunity idea ‘not really panning out,’ doctor explains

Adriana Belmonte

·Senior Editor

Sat, January 8, 2022, 

The Omicron strain of the coronavirus is fueling a rapid surge in confirmed COVID-19 cases — including among vaccinated and even boosted Americans — and a new rise in hospitalizations among unvaccinated Americans is further weakening the notion that natural immunity alone provides adequate protection amid the evolving pandemic.

“This idea of natural immunity is not really panning out with this virus,” Dr. Hilary Fairbrother, an emergency medicine physician based in New York City, said on Yahoo Finance Live (video above). “I think part of that is because Omicron has so many mutations, and there’s really no way to know what the next variant will have.”

The U.S. is nearing 60 million confirmed cases and is averaging more than 500,000 new confirmed cases a day over the last week, raising new questions about whether the U.S. will be able to reach herd immunity.

“I think the problem with herd immunity is that is really taking into account that this virus won’t mutate significantly and we might not have a very significant variant roaming around that has nothing to do with omicron that really doesn’t see any natural immunity from people who have been sick with omicron,” Fairbrother said, adding that "that's kind of what we saw with" previous variants.

'Next to no immunity' with omicron

When it comes to natural immunity, relying on prior natural infection over vaccination can come at a cost — and it doesn't seem to work currently given the evasive capabilities of Omicron. 

Millions of Americans are suffering from long COVID (long-term effects of coronavirus), which can range from mild symptoms like loss of taste and smell to more serious problems like tachycardia and extreme fatigue, and unvaccinated Americans are 20 times as likely to die from the virus.

“For patients who had alpha or delta [strains of coronavirus], they seem to have next to no immunity when it comes to omicron,” Fairbrother said. “There is some evidence that there’s slightly less severity in disease, and other people have certainly seen patients who are very sick with omicron who have already had COVID. So the best protection that we have is vaccination.”

Currently, 62.4% of the U.S. population is fully vaccinated, 74% have received at least one dose, and 35.3% of the fully vaccinated have been boosted, according to CDC data.

'We're in a tough place'

Natural immunity, like immunity provided by vaccines, also wanes over time. 

That means a person can get reinfected and then spread the virus to others, further endangering those who are immunocompromised or not yet eligible for booster shots, such as children.

“Unfortunately for children under five, that’s not an option,” Fairbrother said. “So we’re really seeing this younger child group pay the price of continued coronavirus sweeping our country. Such a large volume of cases means that some of those children are going to get very sick and that they’re going to need hospitalization. That’s really tragic.”

A protester, who identified herself as a school teacher, demonstrates against the mandate that teachers and staff in the NYC Schools system be vaccinated against COVID, in New York City, October 4, 2021. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, nearly 7.9 million children have tested positive for COVID, with over 325,000 cases for the week ending Dec. 30., a 64% increase from the week prior.

“Since those children [under 5] aren’t eligible by age to be vaccinated yet, they really have no other protection except for all of us, hopefully protecting ourselves and decreasing the spread of this very contagious disease,” Fairbrother said.

And aside from protecting children from getting the virus, increasing vaccination uptake also means decreasing the risk of those children spreading it to others in schools, like teachers or other administrative employees.

“Certainly, I’ve heard of schools having to shut down because there aren’t enough teachers and administrators to keep them open,” Fairbrother said. “So I think we’re in a tough place. And there are some communities that really might have to go to virtual learning, which is terrible for everyone, and I think really should only be used as a last resort option when everything else has failed."

The “no-brainer” way to prevent this, she said, is to ensure that all students and teachers are masked up in schools. As of September 2021, 17 states mandate masks to be worn in schools while eight states have outright banned school mask mandates.

“If children aren’t wearing masks and we’re not doing everything with testing that we can do to mitigate any outbreaks that occur within our school systems, I don’t know how we can even expect there to be teachers or other staff to keep schools open, period,” Fairbrother said.

All things considered, according to Fairbrother, the best protection is to follow the core public health guidelines: get vaccinated, social distance, wash your hands, and wear a mask in public.

“Then from there, hopefully with the next variant, things will keep being mild,” she said.

Adriana Belmonte is a reporter and editor covering politics and health care policy for Yahoo Finance. You can follow her on Twitter @adrianambells and reach her at adriana@yahoofinance.com.

Curious cube-shaped 'hut' on moon just another rock


Daniel Otis

CTVNews.ca Writer
Friday, January 7, 2022 


A curious cube-like object photographed by China’s Yutu 2 lunar rover on the far side of the moon turns out to be a rock. (Our Space via China National Space Administration)

A curious cube-like object photographed on the far side of the moon by China’s Yutu 2 lunar rover has been identified. It’s just a rock.

Capturing the internet’s curiosity in December, a hazy image of the object was first released by Our Space, a Chinese-language blog affiliated with the China National Space Administration.

Our Space dubbed it the “mysterious hut.” Yutu 2, which means “Jade Rabbit,” slowly navigated around rugged craters to reach the object. The nearly 60-metre journey took about a month.

“A lifelike rabbit came into view,” Our Space wrote in a Jan. 7 update. “The scattered stones in front of the ‘Jade Rabbit’ looked like a carrot, and the round stone beads behind the ‘Jade Rabbit’ looked like the product of the ‘Jade Rabbit’ after a meal.”

In other words, the imaginative folks at Our Space likened a bunch of ordinary moon rocks to the rover’s floppy-eared namesake, its dinner and the aftermath. Dashing hopes of alien monoliths, it was no strange trip on the far side of the moon.

Yutu 2 is the first lunar rover to explore the moon’s so-called dark side, which gets plenty of sunlight but largely can’t be seen from earth. The rover has covered just over 1,000 metres of terrain since landing in Jan. 2019.

Orbiting Mars in 1976, the Viking 1 spacecraft captured what appeared to be a human-like face on the Martian surface. Later photos revealed a rock formation. For those hoping to find traces of life in our galaxy, NASA’s new James Webb Space Telescope, launched in Dec. 2021, is expected to provide unprecedented data about planets circling other stars. ​


A closeup of the so-called "mysterious hut" taken by China's Yutu 2 lunar rover on the far side of the moon. (Our Space via China National Space Administration)

#CRYPTID

Scientists step up hunt for ‘Asian unicorn’, one of world’s rarest animals

The saola is so elusive that no biologist has seen one in the wild. Now they are racing to find it, so they can save it

The saola has only been captured on camera a handful of times. Photograph: WWF/AP

The age of extinction
About this content
Veronika Perková
Fri 7 Jan 2022 

Weighing 80-100kg and sporting long straight horns, white spots on its face and large facial scent glands, the saola does not sound like an animal that would be hard to spot. But it was not until 1992 that this elusive creature was discovered, becoming the first large mammal new to science in more than 50 years.

Nicknamed the “Asian unicorn”, the saola continues to be elusive. They have never been seen by a biologist in the wild and have been camera-trapped only a handful of times. There are reports of villagers trying to keep them in captivity but they have died after a few weeks, probably due to the wrong diet.

It was during a survey of wildlife in the remote Vũ Quang nature reserve, a 212 square mile forested area of north central Vietnam, in 1992, that biologist Do Tuoc came across two skulls and a pair of trophy horns belonging to an unknown animal.

Twenty more specimens, including a complete skin, were subsequently collected and, in 1993, laboratory tests revealed the animal to be not only a new species, but an entirely new genus in the bovid family, which includes cattle, sheep, goats and antelopes.

Initially named Vu Quang Ox, the animal was later called saola (Pseudoryx nghetinhensis) – meaning “spindle horns”, the arms or posts (sao) of a spinning wheel (la) according to Lao-speaking ethnic groups in Laos and neighbouring Vietnam.

A saola photographed by a camera trap in Laos in 1999. 

Photograph: William Robichaud

The discovery was hailed as one of the most spectacular zoological discoveries of the 20th century but less than 30 years later the saola population is believed to have declined massively due to commercial wildlife poaching, which has exploded in Vietnam since 1994. Even though the saola is not directly targeted by poachers, intensive commercial snaring that supplies animals for use in traditional Asian medicine or as bushmeat serves as the primary threat.


‘Gamechanging’ £10m environmental DNA project to map life in world’s rivers

Despite efforts to improve patrolling of nature reserves in the Annamite mountains, a major mountain range extending about 680 miles through Laos, Vietnam and into north-east Cambodia, poaching has been intensifying. “Thousands of people use snares, so there are millions of them in the forest, which means populations of large mammals and some birds have no way to escape and are collapsing throughout the Annamites,” says Minh Nguyen, a PhD student at Colorado State University, who studies the impact of snares on critically endangered large-antlered muntjac.

In 2001, the saola population was estimated to number 70 to 700 in Laos and several hundred in Vietnam. More recently, experts have put the number at fewer than 100 – a decline that led to the species being listed as critically endangered on the IUCN red list in 2006, the highest risk category that a species can have before extinction in the wild. The animal was last camera-trapped in 2013 in the Saola Nature Reserve in central Vietnam. Since then, villagers continue to report its presence in areas in and around Pu Mat national park in Vietnam and in Bolikhamxay province in Laos.
We stand at a moment of conservation history. We know how to find and save this magnificent animal. We just need the world to come togetherWilliam Robichaud, Saola Foundation

In 2006, William Robichaud and Simon Hedges, a biologist and specialist on wildlife conservation and countering the illegal wildlife trade in Asia and Africa, co-founded the Saola Working Group (SWG) with the aim of finding the last saolas in the wild for a captive breeding programme, in order to reintroduce the species back into the wild in future, in a natural habitat that is free from threats.

The SWG connects conservation organisations in Laos and Vietnam to raise awareness, collect information from local people, and search for saola. But the animals continue to elude the team. Between 2017 and 2019, the SWG carried out an intensive search using 300 camera traps in an 11 square mile area of the Khoun Xe Nongma national protected area in Laos. Not one of the million photographs captured saola.

According to the IUCN, only about 30% of potential Saola habitat has had any form of wildlife survey and potentially as little as 2% has been searched intensively for the species. Technologies limit the capabilities – camera traps are not good at detecting individual animals that are spread across a large area, especially in the damp, dense forest of the saola range. In August this year, the IUCN Species Survival Commission called for more investment in the search for the saola. “It is clear that search efforts must be significantly ramped up in scale and intensity if we are to save this species from extinction,” said Nerissa Chao, Director of the IUCN SSC Asian Species Action Partnership

A drawing of a saola eating leaves. Photograph: Veronika Perková

One organisation, the Saola Foundation, is raising money for a new initiative that would train dogs to detect saola signs such as dung. Any samples would then be studied onsite using rapid saola-specific DNA field test kits being developed in conjunction with the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Molecular Laboratory in New York. Should the kits return a positive result within an hour, expert wildlife trackers will start searching for saola in the forest.

If successful, captured saolas will be taken to a captive breeding centre being developed by the SWG and the Vietnamese government at Bạch Mã national park in central Vietnam.

“We stand at a moment of conservation history,” says Robichaud, who is president of the Saola Foundation. “We know how to find and save this magnificent animal, which has been on planet Earth for perhaps 8m years. We just need the world to come together and support the effort. It won’t cost much, and the reward, for saola, for the Annamite mountains, and for ourselves, will be huge.”

Find more age of extinction coverage here, and follow biodiversity reporters Phoebe Weston and Patrick Greenfield on Twitter for all the latest news and features

Opinion: A historic Canadian insurrection has uncanny parallels with the Capitol riot

January 6, 2022

The Burning of the Parliament House in Montreal by Joseph Legere, 1849.Courtesy of McCord Museum, Montreal

Roy McSkimming is the author of the novels Laurier in love And McDonald.

It is possible that the United States, at a political turning point, could learn something from Canada’s experiment.

With the anniversary of the Capitol Hill uprising approaching, Americans are in a worrying position. Three retired US Army generals recently published a shocking op-ed in The Washington Post. His warning: “The next time we think about the coup, we cool our bones.”

If former President Donald Trump runs again in 2024 and is defeated, generals fear another armed rebellion, this time backed by rogue elements in the US military. “It is not strange,” he wrote, “to say that a military breakdown could lead to civil war.”

The same day, the Post ran a column discussing how civil wars start, advisor to the Central Intelligence Agency, political scientist Barbara F. An upcoming book by Walter. Ms Walter believes the US is closer to civil war than the public understands and has “entered very dangerous territory.” After Mr Trump it is an “anocracy” somewhere between a democracy and an autocratic state. “We are no longer the oldest continuous democracy in the world,” writes Ms. Walter. “That honor is now with Switzerland, followed by New Zealand, and then Canada.”

The Canadian people have never suffered the devastation of a civil war. But before feeling duped, we must consider what happened here in the dark month of April, 1849, 18 years before Confederation, when we had our own violent rebellion.

This took place in Montreal, the capital of colonial Canada, which included future Quebec and future Ontario. It began with a bitter political struggle carried out through parliamentary logic. On April 25, sentimental language boiled over and spread through the streets. The demigods provoked a crowd of several thousand. Waving torches and raising slogans, they marched on the undefended legislature.

Parliament was in session. Without any warning, the mob broke the doors and stormed into the room. The MLAs retaliated, throwing punches and books and ink bottles at their attackers. They were disappointingly outnumbered. One goon grabbed the mace, the other grabbed the chair. The crowd was in possession of the House.

Soon a fire broke out in the wooden building. Within hours the great structure had burned to the ground.

What is the reason for this terrible attack on democracy? Fundamental to 19th-century Canadian society was the cultural and political division, then called “race”—the division between Francophone, largely Roman Catholic, and Anglophone, whose political class was largely Protestant. Discontent, even hatred, between the two “castes” spoiled their coexistence.

In 1849 that ugly side of our politics broke out over a law known as the Rebellion Loss Bill. The bill compensated property owners in Quebec for losses incurred during the Rebellion of 1837, a brief unsuccessful attempt to gain independence from Britain. It was introduced by the Reform government of Robert Baldwin and Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine, an English-French coalition. Scandalized, Conservative opposition alleges law would reward sedition by giving benefits Patriot Rebels whose property was damaged by taking up arms.

Baldwin and LaFontaine were implementing a new form of governance based on the will of the people’s representatives. Innocently called “responsible government”, it was indeed a major step towards democracy and nationalism. Even the British government and the Governor-General of Canada, Lord Elgin, supported this theory. But the opposition feared it would result in “French supremacy.” His loudest spokesmen were extreme Tory MPs and the Montreal Gazetteer, whose rhetoric fueled the fires of burning Parliament.

Mob rule continued for several days in Montreal, damaging reformers’ homes and instigating deadly shootings. But as John Ralston Saul described in his study of LaFontaine and Baldwin, both leaders faced violence with calm resolve. He insisted that the Parliament be convened in the morning after the terrible fire to continue the work of democracy. And he refused to resort to calling the army against his opponents.

Another consequence had lasting consequences for our democracy. Learning from the violence of 1849, liberal conservatives felt an urgent need to reorganize their party on a more inclusive and national basis. Adopting the Baldwin-LaFontaine model, John A. Macdonald and Georges-tienne Cartier persuaded their followers to adopt the “other” they considered in Canada. They formed a large-tent team to bridge the division of language, religion and region. That paradigm has ruled the country ever since.

So the oldest continuous democracy of the East could learn a self-evident truth from its northern neighbor. Political polarization is corrosive and ultimately incompatible with a democratic state. But like an addict, a nation can recover from its excesses and restore its political balance.

Keep your opinion sharp and informed. Receive the Opinion newsletter. ,

Seniors surprised by rental rates at new ‘affordable housing’ building in Nanaimo, B.C.

By Elizabeth McSheffrey 

 Global News
Posted January 6, 2022 


As a brand-new seniors' housing complex is set to open in Nanaimo, some would-be residents say the prices are much higher than they were led to believe. John Hua reports.

Some residents of Nanaimo, B.C. are surprised by the rental rates of a new “affordable housing” option for seniors in the city.

The Nanaimo Affordable Housing Society (NAHS) is accepting tenancy applications for 10 Buttertubs Drive, a six-storey building with 159 units by Buttertub Marsh Park.

The non-profit owns and operates the building, which is funded in partnership with BC Housing.

When the project was announced in 2018, BC Housing billed it as “relief from rising housing costs,” offering “new affordable rental homes” to local seniors.

Many residents of a nearby affordable patio home complex for seniors, however, say they couldn’t afford to live at 10 Buttertubs if their current complex were redeveloped and they needed to move.

“I thought it would be wonderful to get in there, but I didn’t realize the rents were going to be so high I couldn’t afford it,” said Joice Matsuda, who has already applied for tenancy at 10 Buttertubs.

“I still hope it will work in my favour, but I’m not willing to give up my whole pension to get in there.”

According to BC Housing, the 31 studios in the building go for between $500 and $1,250 per month, with most renting at $825. Ninety-seven one bedrooms are available for between $880 and $1,475 monthly, with most renting at $940.

There are 21 one bedrooms with dens that rent for between $1,315 and $1,655, and six two-bedrooms whose rent ranges between $1,400 and $1,540.

2:13New report proposes tax on sale of homes to address home inequity

The difference in rent costs is not explained on the NAHS website, but BC Housing says it’s based on varying amenities, such as balconies or better views.

NAHS declined an on-camera interview for this story, referring questions to BC Housing.

“Myself and a lot of people in here could not afford to move to the new place — you’re looking at $1,600 compared to your $500,” said Wendy Wind, who lives in the patio complex, also operated by NAHS.

“I can’t even afford to get in there period, when you don’t make that much on your pension.”

James Gowar told Global News he had been under the impression — based on the way 10 Buttertubs Drive was described — that they could “almost go across the street and maybe, for another $50, we’ll have a brand-new building.”


READ MORE: Advocates seek Victoria church to help test new shelter option for the unhoused

An amenities package for 10 Buttertubs is also advertised on the NAHS website that includes cable, phone and Internet, linen and towel services, and three meals a day between Monday and Friday.

The website doesn’t indicate that the package is optional, but BC Housing confirms the add-on, which costs between $626 and $726, is not required.

In an interview, BC Housing said 10 Buttertubs Drive never targeted low-income seniors.

“It isn’t a subsidized housing site, but rents are based on incomes for moderate seniors who want to access more options for additional services, like linens and cleaning, or meals as well,” said Heidi Hartman, BC Housing’s regional director for Vancouver Island.

“There’s need across the continuum at all income levels.”

Residents interested in living at 10 Buttertubs can also apply for SAFER (Shelter Aid for Elderly Renters), which provides some tax-free monthly relief to the total cost of monthly rent, Hartman added.

A chart showing how much that subsidy could save residents monthly is available on the NAHS website.

View image in full screen

A chart shows a range of possible contributions to monthly rent from the provincial Shelter Aid for Elderly Renters subsidy. Nanaimo Affordable Housing Society

Hartman said BC Housing has two subsidized buildings currently in development in the Nanaimo area that will target low-income seniors, but they won’t be near Buttertubs.

She also said BC Housing isn’t aware of any current redevelopment plans for the nearby patio home complex occupied by Gowar, Wind and Matsuda — despite the rumours they’ve heard.

“When it comes time to redevelop the patio homes, we’ll have those conversations and we will need to see a relocation plan for all the residents at the patio homes before a project like that is approved and goes forward,” she explained.