The need for affordable housing programs in Estevan is obvious, but a public symposium geared to address the issue attracted only a handful people to the small Legion Hall last Saturday afternoon.
Those who did attend received a lot of information that included a few suggestions from Saskatoon MLA David Forbes who is the NDP's housing critic in the legislative assembly.
"In the legislature my job is to criticize, to be negative if you will, but here today, we can discuss housing issues in a positive way," he told about 15 people who had gathered to hear him along with Lieut. Brian Bobolo of the Salvation Army and Rev. Brenna Nickel of St. Paul's United Church who are key members of the local Warm Welcome program that provides overnight shelter for Estevan's homeless population.
"There is a need for about 400 housing units, apartment type housing," said Blair Shoenfeld who served as emcee for the afternoon's program.
Nickel, who was introduced by Evelyn Johnson, pointed out that "people with houses means less strain on society. Estevan is growing and changing rapidly and we know this from our roads and other signs. Our church is right next to the bus depot and we have people stopping in once or twice a month asking if we know where they can stay because inexpensive hotel or motel rooms are not there. That's why the Salvation Army and we started a shelter program to provide them with an overnight sleep with security. It's not a live-in shelter," Nickel said.
The project that got underway this winter has now housed over 90 people (some repeat guests) but it will wind down after Easter.
Because of the high rental rates, it's a challenge for people newly arrived in Estevan to come up with a first and last month's rental fee up front. They need to get some traction in the community, she said.
A recent arrival from New Jersey, Nickel said "Estevan now competes with downtown Manhattan as far as rental rates go and there is no Metropolitan Opera House down the street here, so the needs are obvious and that's why I'm proud of our Warm Welcome endeavour, but it needs improvement. Estevan is difficult to come to if you are an outsider. Housing is an issue here for a broad range of people and I'm referring to employed people. Awareness needs to be raised," Nickel added.
Bobolo said the Salvation Army and the shelter staff and volunteers deal with the "flip side of the boom."
The Army's representative in Estevan said, "homelessness here is diverse, it's different. Families are arriving simply looking for work and housing. Many have already landed jobs, but they need help in bridging the gap."
Because most of the jobs in Estevan pay low to average wages, with rents constantly creeping up, it becomes a growing challenge for many and that means they could end up requiring counselling as well as housing as they strive to make ends meet, he said. That includes young people with few life skills and those who might struggle with mental health issues, too. Building a relationship with these people is the best thing we can do for them, said Bobolo, because when trust is built, then stability follows.
"There is more to it than just providing a building. We also need a mechanism to reduce anxiety and depression that comes with the problem. You can't last long as a couch surfer, especially if you're not family."
Bobolo said the local food bank, Warm Welcome shelter and the opportunity for the homeless to get some fresh clothing and/or laundry facilities and a shower, along with a hot meal on occasion, means a lot.
"These people end up becoming desperate for social contact, avoiding the homeless stigmas. They don't need to go through life untouched, they need grounding, a foundation and acceptance," Bobolo said.
"They don't feel equal, especially in a wealthy small city like Estevan. They're not part of the landscape and Estevan can't seem to wrap their minds around the fact that homelessness is here."
Bobolo said outdated food or stained old clothing that people sometimes try to donate to the food bank and shelter programs,are immediately chucked.
"We have to, for legal reasons and for dignity. We fight this public relations nightmare all the time and we'll continue to fight that fight because these are people who are looking for an opportunity to contribute to the community and they know their chances are diminished when they're dirty, smelly, unkempt. So they retreat, they hide and start to wear that label that others give them. They become experts in reading body language. Some can get creative and move forward. Others crash and burn."
Bobolo said the Salvation Army would support transitional housing programs and he provided some statistical evidence of how assistance programs have worked so far, including the 69 nights in the shelter, 200 overnight stays by about 90 people. They have also provided up to $14,000 worth of temporary hotel accommodations and $7,200 in food. On some evenings, those who required help were sent to Weyburn where accommodations were made available. Since Christmas the Salvation Army has had 945 people drop in for a daytime lunch, including 40 children and have been given over $1,000 in clothing and blankets and $700 for transportation and $1,000 for medications.
Food bank use is up 10 per cent, he said, and will top $50,000 in value this year.
"We need to be the eyes and ears for possible partnerships with these people," said Bobolo.
Forbes said he agreed that Estevan was unique and it, along with other communities, are just coming off a long, tough winter of disconnections.
"With a vacancy rate of .6 per cent, it's the lowest in the province and we have a government whose multi-family housing policy consists of giving a stern lecture to those who raise the rent too high, too fast," he said.
Forbes said with current policy ruling out rent controls, it was time to reach for other tools.
"The rest of the province is watching Estevan, to see what you do. The Warm Welcome program was watched. People all over were asking what was going on. This is supposed to be a wealthy little city, what could go wrong here? It's time we found out."
Forbes said the federal government had a housing program, but it's now reduced, and he expected that a planned April 8 meeting in Estevan will help illuminate some proposals to address the local housing issues.
"We need a wide range of opinions here. It can mean home ownership, young people having problems getting started, needing a stable start. After all, shelter is a basic right understood around the world. Churches are on the front line on this, but governments can't be stepping back on this file, they need to step up."
Forbes said he agreed with Nickel regarding Saskatchewan's cost of housing, citing recent migrations of PotashCorp executives from Chicago to Saskatoon where they were shocked at the cost and then rental rate increases in Saskatoon.
"One executive told me, 'at least in Chicago we had rent control.'"
Forbes went on to say one piece of advice he could offer was that "when you build your housing plan, you make it for 30 years or more. Don't let Estevan become another Uranium City. Don't let the developers construct buildings that won't last 10 years. You have two elected officials in your city who should be able to pull something into Estevan. It's time to make them accountable. And remember when you tear down old buildings, you might be tearing down a low income person's home. You have a responsibility here. Make sure your labour force is healthy, question the condominium versus apartment policies of the city, make a pitch for co-operative housing, don't let developers have the out to switch apartments to condos by a simple phrase in a contract. Don't fall into the condo trap. Ask if you need more incentives for developers to build apartments. Maybe a government needs to step up and build one."
Later, during an interview, Forbes suggested that in some communities, a corporation has stepped in and built a legacy apartment unit for its own employees. They would build and operate it for four or five years, providing housing for their people until stability was gained and then they would turn it over to the city or province to continue to operate within the social housing framework.
"There are solutions. The current provincial government has a housing policy that has some merit, and can be a part of a growth pattern, but they fall down on the rental file and I know this drives the premier crazy because he knows that there are a lot of great landlords in Saskatchewan and then there are the outliers, so it's not easy to fix, but somebody has to stand up and get moving."
