Image: Abbotsford South MLA Bruce Banman / An aerial view showing Martens Park (left), the site of a proposed modular housing project by BC Housing, and Abbotsford Traditional School across the street in the centre and right of this image.

By Mike Vanden Bosch

Concerns over proposed housing site

Abbotsford school PAC president wants answers over proposed SRO featuring drug use – near school

Oct 29, 2025 | 1:02 PM

ABBOTSFORD — The president of the Abbotsford Traditional School Parent Advisory Council is voicing concerns over plans by BC Housing to build a single-room occupancy (SRO) supportive housing project with a drug consumption room directly across from the school.

In a statement emailed Wednesday morning to multiple news outlets in B.C., ATS PAC president Rani Prakash says Abbotsford parents have been actively reaching out to all levels of government — municipal, provincial, and federal — to raise serious concerns about the appropriateness of this location and the lack of consultation with the school community. Prakash says despite repeated attempts, their concerns remain unanswered, and families are growing increasingly exacerbated by the silence from leadership.

As Fraser Valley Today reported in September, Abbotsford South MLA Bruce Banman asserted that a modular housing development would be built at 2270 Martens Street on land owned by the provincial government, but in close proximity to a nearby school, Abbotsford Traditional School, where drugs would be consumed.

BC Housing has since confirmed that an “overdose prevention space,” a euphemism for drugs being used on site, would be present at the proposed housing site.

“Many supportive housing sites built across B.C. include an overdose prevention space designed to reduce public drug use, prevent the death of residents, and improve access to health-care services, such as treatment and recovery supports,” BC Housing wrote in an email to Fraser Valley Today. “These spaces serve residents only. They are not available for anyone who is not a resident. The other option is people using alone in their rooms or outside, which doesn’t work for communities and often leads to tragic outcomes.”

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Prakash says the PAC is still awaiting the collaborative meeting BC Housing was supposed to arrange during the week of October 13, as well as responses from Abbotsford Mayor Ross Siemens and B.C. Premier David Eby.

“This is not about opposing supportive housing,” said Prakash. “It’s about ensuring that student safety and community well-being are not compromised in the process.”

Prakash stresses that parents and community members acknowledge the urgent need for supportive housing and services for vulnerable populations, but they don’t believe the proposed location—directly across from a school—is appropriate. The location, however, raises significant safety and wellbeing concerns for students.

‘’We fully support helping people who need housing and recovery support,” Prakash added. “But placing a facility with a safe consumption room across from a school is not the right solution. This isn’t about opposing housing—it’s about finding a safer, more suitable location.”

Since learning of the proposal, the ATS PAC (Parent Advisory Council) has reached out to BC Housing, the City of Abbotsford, the Abbotsford School Board, Abbotsford School District, DPAC and local representatives to better understand the project and advocate for student safety. Prakash says PAC representatives have already met with Abbotsford city councillors, MLA Bruce Banman, MLA Harman Bhangu, MP Brad Vis, MP Sukhman Gill and members of the Board of Education to share parents’ concerns and ask for a collaborative meeting, greater transparency, and community consultation.

Image: Abbotsford Traditional School PAC / Conservative Party of Canada MP Suhkman Gill with the Abbotsford Traditional School PAC.

The PAC has also launched petitions online and at both the federal and provincial levels:

Prakash says MPs Vis and Gill will both present the federal petition in the House of Commons, while MLA Banman will present the provincial petition in the BC Legislature.

“These petitions give our families and community members a voice,” said Prakash. “We want to ensure parents have the opportunity to be heard and that the decisions made truly reflect what’s best for both students and residents.”

The PAC is encouraging BC Housing, City and the Province to explore alternative sites that would both support vulnerable residents and protect student safety. They have also requested that BC Housing pause the permit process until meaningful consultation with the school community and the City can take place.

The proposed project, located at 2270 Martens Street, would include units for 42 individuals transitioning from homelessness, on-site supports, and a safe consumption area. The development is being advanced by BC Housing, in partnership with the B.C. government and an on-site operator that could potentially have a minimum of two staff on site 24 hours a day.

“We absolutely agree that housing and support services are vital — and that the focus should be on finding lasting solutions rather than short-term, bandaid ones, but does that solution include placing a supportive housing facility with a safe consumption room directly across from a school serving Grades 6–12?” Rani said. “Our children are also among the most vulnerable members of this community, and their safety and well-being deserve Mayor Siemens and Premier Eby’s equal advocacy and protection.”

Over 1,000 people have signed a petition opposing the proposed housing location.