VANCOUVER, British Columbia—The province of British Columbia said on Tuesday it will spend $80 million to protect the supply of housing for the poor, which some activists say is threatened by developments ahead of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
Gordon Campbell, premier of the West Coast Canadian province, said some of the money will be used to buy 10 buildings in Vancouver, which has seen affordable rental housing torn down by a crush of condominium construction in one of Canada's most expensive housing markets.
Campbell denied the funding was linked to the 2010 Games, but protesters have recently targeted Olympics-related events to complain the plight of the city's homeless was being ignored.
The funding will protect nearly 1,000 affordable housing rental units in the Vancouver area and in the provincial capital of Victoria.
The province said it will also fund "supportive housing" projects that are designed to help homeless people get off the streets permanently by giving them access to services such as employment training.
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