One partnership is drawing together four different organizations to improve home safety for tenants.
KidsFirst Nipawin, Nipawin Fire, bylaw enforcement and public health have teamed up to do safety inspections and recommend measures for improvement.
Janice Boughen is manager of the KidsFirst program, which visits homes to provide information on the optimal development of children.
When her staff members visit Nipawin homes, they see unsafe conditions.
“Overcrowding is often due to families who are living together because they’re unable to find additional housing,” said Boughen. “We need a larger supply of rental housing in the community.”
Boughen said a safe home environment is essential for children.
“We also see some health concerns that can be related back to homes, with respiratory issues in children, infestations of rodents or insects, and that certainly affects children’s ability to play in the home.”
Families looking for housing in town find that units offered by the Nipawin Housing Authority are often full.
Dale Harder, who manages the authority, said that while there is a waiting list for those units, turnover is quick, with families moving in frequently.
Of the 218 units offered by the housing authority, 35 are vacant, but the empty units are designated for seniors.
Boughen said the partnership is making a difference.
“We’re not seeing any concerns with evictions due to that [partnership] but we are seeing safety improvements made in the homes, and that’s what really matters.”
During her time with KidsFirst, Boughen has seen homelessness and the availability of rental housing worsen.
“Having said that, I believe with a lot of the work that we’ve done, both KidsFirst and the Oasis, some of the rental stock is improving in safety.”
Brian Starkell, Nipawin’s fire chief, noted that one aspect of the partnership is building trust with tenants and landlords. He has a simple goal:
“We want everybody to have a safe home,” he said.
“We have never, ever evicted anyone out of their home. We might draw up some orders onto a home, and give the landlord or the renter of the home some time to get the deficiencies repaired,” said Starkell.
He pointed to smoke detectors, extension cords and light switch covers as some of the items needing updates or fixes.
Luc Morin, who is both a fire prevention officer with the fire department and a bylaw enforcement officer, said the partnership among the organizations is key to gaining the trust of renters and landlords.
“We can’t just do a surprise inspection. We need permission to enter the homes.”
He identified broken windows and unfinished flooring as issues he’s encountered in the past.
Morin emphasized that many landlords have been cooperative in working with the partners to improve the safety of rental units. Starkell noted that homeowners are given time to rectify any identified problems.
“Sometimes it might take 30 or 60 or 90 days to get a contractor to come in. Everyone is busy and they can’t just drop everything and run,” said Starkell. “We want to work with the contractors and with the renter and also the homeowner.”
The fourth partner is the Kelsey Trail Health Region. Its public health inspector, Michael Hayduk, also participates in the home visits.
