Housing advocates and tenants in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside are pushing back against a rezoning proposal they say will accelerate gentrification and leave low-income residents behind.

The Carnegie Housing Project and several community organizations are holding a press conference outside City Hall on Tuesday ahead of a public hearing on the plan, which staff say is designed to speed up replacement of deteriorating single-room occupancy (SRO) units in the neighbourhood.

Under the proposal, the city would change how it defines social housing, allowing taller rental towers in the Downtown Eastside Oppenheimer District (DEOD) and parts of East False Creek.

The changes would permit buildings up to 32 storeys, so long as 20 per cent of units are designated as social housing. However, only a

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