Documents

July 16, 2017

This article first appeared in the Vancouver Sun. We fret about the future of the Riverview Lands as if they were an idyllic place fixed in time, where any change to the way we use the Lands, or any imaginative idea for them, is hard to countenance. We should instead ask ourselves how the Lands can best be used to help those who suffer from serious mental illness – the historical legacy of Riverview – and take it from there…

July 30, 2014

The original discussion paper on the model, July 2014. It begins with a sketch of the institutional model (the old Riverview Hospital) and of deinstitutionalization and its problems, then moves on from there to describe the proposed third model for the seriously mentally ill, a mixed population “intentional community” on the Riverview Lands…

Last revised May 28, 2015

Last revised May 28, 2015
An elaboration of the proposal, covering the community model, development of the Village, the clinical story, economic factors, and relationships and belonging. The additional details answer questions that arose consequent to the release of the proposal document…

January 12, 2016

Response to B.C. Housing’s December 2015 “vision” document for renewing the Lands. While congratulating B.C. Housing on envisaging a Village in the centre of the Lands that would be inclusive of people with a mental illness, it points to the crucial need to take the next step – an explicit commitment to an intentional community for the benefit of those with a serious mental illness, rather than a generic village…

September 15, 2016

Analysis of how intentional communities work, throwing light on the potential for Riverview. Seven existing therapeutic community are described, covering those with a serious mental illness, those struggling with addiction, the developmentally disabled and Alzheimer’s patients. Commonalities are explored. Includes links to resource materials. ..

July 6, 2015

Exploration of the remarks of a special panel on Riverview’s renewal and of the public in attendance, noting (1) areas of considerable agreement, (2) areas where there wasn’t agreement, but which could bear with further discussion, and (3) a missing aspect in the discussion, the whole providing context for moving the process forward.

October 11, 2016

Speaking notes for a presentation to the City of Coquitlam’s Riverview Lands Advisory Committee, making the point again of the need for B.C. Housing to commit to an intentional community for the benefit of the mentally ill.

November 30, 2016

Written in response to a request made by the City’s Riverview Lands Advisory Committee. Its finding: “There is good symbiosis between the two proposals and no basic conflict.”