Coast Mountain College classes resume in Prince Rupert, but housing remains a challenge for many students

Class is back in session at the Prince Rupert campus of
Coast Mountain College

The start of September brings a new start for a school year, for many it's the beginning of a post secondary education experience, with a number of students from the North Coast, British Columbia and across Canada, as well as a growing number of International Students making their way to Prince Rupert to start their next chapter or return for another year of learning.

For the Prince Rupert campus two events mark the start of the School year, the New Student Orientation set for September 15th and a Welcome Back Feast on September 14.

Last week, the main campus in Terrace celebrated a totem pole raising in recognition of their new student housing building on campus and ongoing commitment towards reconciliation and decolonization. 

An impressive looking facility that has gone a long way to reducing the stress of finding housing accommodation for students in that city.

Last week's pole raising ceremony in front of the
Wii Gyemsiga Siwilaawksat housing building
 on CMTN's Terrace campus
(photo from CMTN FB page)

However, for Prince Rupert based students that stress only builds, that as they take on the challenges of finding housing in a market with few actual rental housing options to choose from.

There has been much talk about one day bringing housing to the Prince Rupert area for Coast Mountain College students. 

But for the most part it's been mostly the same statements offered year to year, the theme of a work in progress, though one seemingly with little actual progress to show for it.

There does seem to be provincial money available for student housing, a quick look at the information page for Anne Kang, the Minister of Advanced Education and Skills training shows a long list of recent announcements for student housing that have been delivered.

 Notes shared on September 2nd by the Minister at the Nanaimo announcement event pictured below:

Among the most recent locations to gain the ear of the Provincial government to address the issue and deliver a positive response for housing: 

The University of Victoria, Vancouver Island University in Nanaimo, Douglas College in New Westminster, Okanagan College in Kelowna and the University of the Fraser Valley in Abbotsford and those are just the announcements that go back to May.

In 2021, when the Minister was in Terrace to celebrate the new housing on campus, we noted of the checklist of successful student housing projects at that time in British Columbia, a list even longer than that above.

So, perhaps North Coast MLA Jennifer Rice, the members of Prince Rupert City Council and Senior administration officials at Coast Mountain College in Terrace can see if they can gain some movement from the province on the Prince Rupert issues.  

Mainly by hammering home for the government the extreme housing situation facing residents and those from points around the globe who are choosing to take their studies at programs that the college is offering in the community.

The last update from the college came in June when they outlined that they had requested funds to build housing facilities for both the Prince Rupert campus and the one in Smithers.

Though as we observed in our notes of that month, the commentary on the request for funding was similar to that of the same time in 2021, so if the province is getting the correspondences they may not be making their way to the top of the pile.

The quest for student housing in Prince Rupert goes back as far as 2014 when then Mayor Jack Mussallem first made his calls for help to the province in Victoria.

Eight years would seem long enough to anticipate a return call and some definitive plan of action for the community to address a long running request and a situation that is getting more challenging by the day.

More notes on Coast Mountain College can be reviewed through our archive page here.

Cross posted from the North Coast Review.