2024 Keynote Speakers – Atlantic Planners Institute

Conference Opening Keynote Speaker: Dr. Eric Weissman

This address speaks to the five pillars of the conference using video and photo essays produced by Dr. Weissman the last 28 years. Since 1996, recovered from addictions and episodic homelessness, he has worked extensively with housing and homelessness advocates and community, critically examining tiny homes, emergency campgrounds, Housing First and Harm reduction. He argues for bold experimentation with design, regulation and funding of many kinds of housing types to address our collective needs. Dr. Weissman will show an abridged version of his videography in various housing spaces and speak especially to the importance of embracing new directions and making waves.

Bio: Dr. Eric Weissman has been developing and applying a lived-experience form of scholarship to the study of homelessness, housing, mental health, and substance use in Canadian and US cities since 1999. Having recovered from the lived experience of episodic homelessness and severe Substance Use Disorder over 26 years ago, he is well familiar with the difficulty people have when trying to find and keep safe and stable housing, which is essential to addressing other health concerns and to the general well-being of communities. His current academic work began in 1999 in tent camps and tiny home communities like Toronto’s Tent City, which was the subject of his first film, “Subtext-real stories” (2005; 2012). He lived for a short time at Dignity Village Oregon, the first legal emergency transitional campground in US history, and the main site for his dissertation fieldwork completed at Concordia University in Montreal.

In 2014 his dissertation was awarded the Canadian Association of Graduate Studies Distinguished Dissertation Award. His work is comparative and critical. He looks at the provisions that make a range of housing models, from Housing First to tiny home communities, which he calls Intentional Homeless Communities, feasible in the context of widespread homelessness in North American cities. He uses photos, video, and visual elicitation practices to understand the narratives impacting how social policies are designed, experienced and critiqued. His work is a form of community based critical and pragmatic ethnography that asks stakeholders of various kinds in the areas of housing, homelessness, mental health and addictions, “ how do you see the world, and how might you change it?”

He has led a number of community based research projects examining policies governing housing for vulnerable populations, published two books, presented at many international conferences and speaks publicly about issues related to his research and lived experience. In 2017, he was honoured to contribute to the Indigenous Definition of Homelessness in Canada (Thistle, COH 2017), a policy piece now adopted widely by governments across Canada. His recent CIHR funded collaboration with Canadian scholars on the impact of COVID and front-line workers in the homelessness sector, has resulted in several publications and policy recommendations.

In addition to these interests, in 2018, Dr. Weissman became Principal Investigator on a multi-sited study of post-secondary student homelessness across Canada. This collaborative project was recently funded by the Making the Shift Social Innovation Lab and involves researchers from several Canadian post-secondary institutions, education and housing policy makers, and students in an effort to understand and demonstrate the concrete needs of post-secondary students facing housing precarity. This project is the subject of CBC and Canadian Press coverage. Dr. Weissman has recently formed a visual ethnography lab at UNB Saint John (ethnolab.ca under construction) to help students and community partners craft focused and scholarly applied visual studies of social problems in NB. Dr. Weissman is a strong supporter of innovative approaches to social problems like addictions and homelessness and sits on a number of committees addressing the need for affordable housing alternatives, and harm reduction.

Conference Closing Panel Speakers

Ken Forrest, RPP, MCIP
Director, Planning & Development, City of Fredericton

Ken Forrest is the Director of Planning and Development for the City of Fredericton. Ken has almost 30 years of experience in urban planning. He returned to Fredericton in 2013 after spending five years in Saint John as Commissioner of Planning and Development. In Saint John, he oversaw the completion of Saint John’s national award-winning municipal plan, PlanSJ. Ken has also held worked in Alberta and Nova Scotia over the course of his career.

In Fredericton, Ken successfully led the process to create Imagine Fredericton, Fredericton’s award-winning growth strategy and municipal plan. He has also guided the Planning Department through completion of the City Centre Plan, the Main Street Plan, the NBEX Plan, and the Fredericton Housing Needs Assessment and Affordable Housing Strategy. These plans are guiding Fredericton through one of the fastest periods of growth in the community’s history.

Mr. Forrest holds an Honours degree in Political Science from the University of Alberta and a Master’s degree in Urban and Rural Planning from Dalhousie University. He has also studied at the University of New Brunswick and the University of Virginia. He is a full member of the Canadian Institute of Planners and a Registered Professional Planner in the Province of New Brunswick.

Kit Hickey
Executive Director
Housing Alternatives Inc.

Kit Hickey is the Executive Director of Housing Alternatives Inc. & Rehabitat Inc. Housing Alternatives has been providing development and property management services to housing co-operatives and non profit housing organizations in southwestern NB since 1981. Rehabitat, incorporated in 1985, owns 4 rooming houses plus 130 units of non profit housing for seniors, families and non elderly singles in the Saint John and surrounding area.

Kit has been with the organizations since their beginning and also serves on the Board of Directors of the Housing Hub of New Brunswick; New Brunswick Collaborative Housing Co-operative; the Steering Committee of the New Brunswick Community Land Trust Co-operative and is a board member of several other non profit organizations in Saint John.

Kit received the CMHC Award for Outstanding Contribution to Co-operative Housing in 2004; The Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal in 2022; and in 2024 was the recipient of the New Brunswick Non Profit Housing Association’s Gary Glauser Leadership Award.

Dale Hicks
President
Rising Tide

Mr. Hicks is a life-long resident of Moncton who retired from Transport Canada in 2011 as Atlantic Region Director of Railway Safety and Transportation of Dangerous Goods.

From a young age, Mr. Hicks volunteered in his community mainly through local sports, primarily in hockey at various levels including minor hockey, high school, junior and senior categories.

Since retirement, his efforts have been directed towards the non-profit sector focused upon issues of poverty, in particular food insecurity and homelessness. He was board president of Food Depot Alimentaire from 2010 to 2023 addressing the ongoing effort to feed the less fortunate across the province. In addition, he was the driving force behind the establishment of the Peter McKee Community Centre in 2016 which serves Moncton families.

In June of 2017, he was recognized for his contributions by being awarded the Governor General Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteerism.

In 2019 he got involved with the challenge of homelessness in Moncton and was a founding member of a small group responsible for the creation of Rising Tide Community Initiatives Inc. He was selected the initial board president in 2020 and currently remains in that role.

In 2022 he was also presented the Queen’s Jubilee Award for his efforts with both food insecurity and affordable housing.

Keith Brideau
President & CEO of Historica, IMPACT & Brideau Capital

Keith Brideau is a visionary real estate developer, entrepreneur, and investor with over 20 years of diverse experience across multiple industries. Born and raised in Saint John, New Brunswick, Keith earned his degree in Electrical Engineering and a Diploma in Technology Management & Entrepreneurship from the University of New Brunswick in 2003.

In 2008, Keith co-founded Historica, a group of companies that has become synonymous with high-quality real estate in New Brunswick. As President & CEO of Historica, Keith has played a pivotal role in the revitalization of Uptown Saint John, redeveloping dozens of heritage buildings into vibrant commercial, residential, and mixed-use spaces. Over 16 years, Keith and his partners acquired 40 buildings, making them one of the largest landlords in the city and transforming the landscape of the community.

In 2021, Keith formed IMPACT, a company focused on the redevelopment of Saint John’s Old North End (ONE), where he plans to build over 1,000 new apartments over the next 10 years. His vision includes not only addressing the housing shortage but also enhancing the community with public spaces and waterfront amenities. A proud native of the ONE, Keith is committed to giving back through initiatives that support at-risk youth, schools, and community centers.

Keith’s most recent venture, Brideau Capital, is a private equity investment firm partnering with developers and landlords to acquire and develop real estate throughout Atlantic Canada. Over the past year, Brideau Capital has acquired hundreds of apartments, with a target of achieving $1 billion in assets under management by 2034. Keith’s strategic approach and deep local expertise make him a sought-after partner for those looking to unlock value in the region’s real estate market.

In addition to his business endeavors, Keith is an alumnus of New Brunswick’s 21 Leaders Program and the Wallace McCain Institute’s Entrepreneurial Leaders Program. He has served as a member of the City of Saint John’s Planning Advisory Committee, a Director of Uptown Saint John Inc., and Chair of Uptown Saint John’s Urban Design & Development Committee.

Don Darling

Closing Keynote Panel Moderator

With over 30 years of experience across private, public, and non-profit sectors, Don is a passionate leader known for exceeding expectations and fostering a commitment to social equity and citizen well-being. His diverse skill set fosters strong communication, collaboration, and relationship building, allowing Don to navigate challenges and drive positive change. An eager learner, Don thrives in collaborative environments, leveraging problem-solving and business acumen to identify growth opportunities.