I love the category, created below, of "Our Common Humanity". I hope there can be more discussion on that topic. I want to discuss the potential building project, which touches on that issue as well, but is perhaps more specific to housing and the "built environment".

I think it is important for us to have as extensive a discussion as possible about the proposed building project (see the church home page, via the link to the left).

As a start, the article below concerns overall theories of urban development, and specifically what is called "The New Urbanism", which holds that:

In order to promote community, the built environment must be diverse in population, scaled for the pedestrian, and capable of supporting mass transit as well as the automobile. It must have a well-defined public realim supported by buildings reflecting the architecture and ecology of the region

The author has his own take on how churches can add value to New Urbanism:

From one perspective churches appear to be buildings that serve the needs of a particular worshipping community. However, churches represent an informal network of people who care deeply for their community, and church buildings are community catalysts and anchor points for the entire neighborhood. For these and many other reasons, urban planners and New Urbanists have everything to gain and nothing to lose from looking to churches as partners in their community building efforts.

Can Hillhurst United be described as "an anchor point for the entire neighbourhood"?

Here's the entire article:

www.cardus.ca/columns/487/


In another article, the same author says:

With regard to economic justice issues, New Urbanist communities face a much more difficult problem. The market is very difficult to control, and attempts to mitigate the negative effects of the market on vulnerable population groups are subject to abuse and unintended consequences. However, again, this may be an area in which the Christian community has something valuable to offer. A great many non-profit institutions that work within poor neighborhoods to provide affordable housing are based on a Christian vision for justice. Habitat for Humanity is just one well known example, but I could point to numerous examples scattered throughout cities and towns. This “on the ground” experience in the complexities of affordable housing and the thick network of relationships of trust built up among these institutions are invaluable assets as municipalities and New Urbanists seek to make the goal of equitable housing a reality for residents. There is no more obvious place to turn in seeking solutions to the problem of affordable housing than to those who already have a good track record in providing affordable housing for the residents of a particular community.

and he makes a rather provocative statement:

....although I see the New Urbanist movement as encouraging a radical rethinking of the way we think about community, it has taken root within a more general political culture that may impose some limits on what it may achieve. New Urbanism in North America is implemented in a broader tradition of political liberalism which may place some limits on what it may achieve.

Political liberalism sees the only relevant political entities to be the individual and the state. In this view, most political activity has to do with balancing the rights of the individual against the power of the state. Religious communities, within this framework, are not seen as politically relevant. They are understood as voluntary organizations indistinguishable from, say, bingo halls or model train clubs. But people who are deeply committed to their religious community see it as much more significant than these kinds of voluntary associations—they often understand their church, synagogue, or mosque as being central to their lives.

Does that sound like us? Are we firmly enough rooted in the community and its people to be central to many people's lives?

Here's the whole article.

http://www.cardus.ca/comment/article/947



Yes, there are concerns like parking, financing and building codes to discuss, and these are important issues. But how are we working with existing groups in the neighbourhood such as Brenda Strafford foundation and the groups making proposals for the St. John's church site? In 50 years, how will our building plans affect the neighbourhood that exists around Kensington Close?

Homelessness and Housing - Orientation - October 26

The fall is in full swing and we want to bring housing and homelessness at HUC back to the forefront. There's a lot of interest in this challenging issue at HUC and now's the time to transform this energy into action. (Image courtesy of Floyd Honey Foundation)

There are four areas we are currently working on:
1. HUC Homelessness Orientation Session
2. Project Homeless Connect
3. Inn from the Cold
4. Habitat for Humanity

1. HUC Homelessness and Housing Orientation Session
In the Spring, members of HUC expressed a tremendous interest in being involved in Homelessness and Housing issues in our community. Now is your chance to learn of ways you can get involved, from one off volunteer opportunities to ongoing commitments to help manage and run programs initiatives, both new and old. To explain some of these and to really get things going with regards to homelessness at HUC, we want to have an orientation session for all those interested in housing and homelessness as follows:

When: October 26, (after the service)
What: A quick briefing on four different initiatives with 2 quick break out sessions to better understand the opportunities on how you can make a difference
Why: To help focus people's energies, reduce clutter of emails and make a bigger difference in ending homelessness and improve housing options for those most at risk.
Who: Anyone who has an interest in issues related to homelessness
Where: The Sanctuary/Heritage Room, HUC

Schedule: 10 minute introduction of five different initiatives

* Project Homelessness - Jill
* Inn From the Cold - Leanne and Kathryn
* Habitat for Humanity - Greg
* Parkdale's Emergency Fund and Homelessness Outreach in ACTION! Rep from Parkdale United
* Annual Fundraiser - Brent

Followed by 2x10-minute break out sessions to allow everyone to hear a little more about each initiative and what they can do.

2. Project Homeless Connect
Several members of the HUC community took part in Project Homeless Connect in September. We would love to connect with those of you who participated so we can hear how it went and potentially ask you to a write a short blurb to tell others all about it. If you were able to participate in the last PHC, please let us know by way of response to this message.

The next PHC is tentatively scheduled for November 22nd - more details on that soon.

3. Inn from the Cold
The next Inn from the Cold is scheduled for October 18. Please contact Leanne (l.sklarenko(at)shaw.ca) and Kathryn (kawytsma(at)gmail.com) if you would like to volunteer.

4. Habitat for Humanity
Habitat for Humanity is always looking for volunteers. If you are interested in any of a wide variety of volunteer opportunities, either reply to this message or write to Greg at greg.a.powell(at)gmail.com.

Homelessness and Housing

The Hillhurst United Church outreach committee is preparing to launch a major campaign to address some of the challenges currently faced by those living in Calgary without a home. (Image to right courtesy of salvationarmy.ca)

We are considering including some (or all, or all and then some) of the following in the campaign:
- NIMBY to YIMBY ("not-in-my-backyard" to "yes-in-my-backyard" with respect to non-market housing)
- Speakers Series/Education Updates/Discussion Groups
- Partnering with the Poverty Reduction Coalition
- Continuing our work with Inn From the Cold
- Developing a fund for CUPS to access on an emergency basis
- Supporting Project Homeless Connect
- Gathering a crew of volunteers that can respond quickly to a housing-related crisis as needed

We would love to hear more ideas and hear thoughts about the above. Implementing all of these ideas will require many volunteers with a variety of skills and backgrounds - let us know what you would like to do!