Low-income housing doors shut

City parishes urged to provide shelter for the disadvantaged

By RAMON GONZALEZ
WCR Staff Writer
Edmonton

But in Edmonton, a number of people don't seem to have that right. In its third count of homeless persons in 2000, the Edmonton Homelessness Count Committee found there are 1,125 people in the city who have no place to live. That figure included 117 children under 15.

Social activists say the figure is certainly much higher because people do not want to admit they are homeless. Not included in the count are thousands of low-income workers who simply can't save enough for a down payment.

According to Bob McKeon, founder of the Inner City Housing Society, at least 5,000 units are required in Edmonton to meet the housing needs of lower and middle income Edmontonians. In 2000, the Edmonton Coalition on Homeless called for the construction of at least 500 units each year for five years.

There are many non-profit groups working together to address the housing needs of Edmontonians, but they are only scraping the surface.

Until the provincial and federal governments commit substantial amounts of money to these organizations and until the public begins to take action, little is going to change, McKeon believes.

Both levels of government made it clear several years ago they wanted to get out of social housing because it's expensive.

"We had significant government projects up to seven years ago, both federally and provincially," McKeon recalls. "But those funds eventually disappeared with the cuts of the mid-1990s."

With little government support, projects that do go ahead have to pull money and resources from different sources, including service clubs. As a result, completion of any project may take several years.

But as McKeon noted, there are community projects and initiatives taking place. Many of them involve churches or Church people who are committed to solving the problem.

Habitat for Humanity, for example, has built 40 homes for low income Edmontonians during the last 10 years. And with financing from St. Thomas More, St. Agnes and St. Anthony's parishes, Habitat will build another home in northeast Edmonton this year or next.

Since 1999, the Edmonton District Council of Churches, the Quality of Life Commission and the Social Justice Commission of the Edmonton Archdiocese have invited congregations and parishes to share their Christmas Eve collections with people who lack safe, affordable housing. The project, called No Room In the Inn, has provided seed money for several projects.

"Churches sit on vast amounts of money (including retirement funds) that they can invest in social housing." - Bob McKeon

It gave almost $37,000 to the Inner City Housing Society in 1999 and another $6,200 in 2000. The funds became seed money for the purchase of land on 106th Avenue and 96th Street to build a 25-suite apartment building for inner city singles. Named Rotary Millennium House, the residence should open soon.

In 2000, No Room in the Inn contributed more than $38,000 to Urban Manor to build a new 75-bed residence that will be ready in June. Major funding for this project was provided by the Edmonton Housing Trust Fund, a community-based organization.

Collections from this past Christmas, $15,000 so far (money is still coming in), are going to the Handicapped Housing Society of Alberta to build an apartment complex for low income and special access needs individuals and families.

In operation since 1972, the society has provided homes for 240 people.

Low income Edmontonians have also found relief through the Central Edmonton Community Land Trust, an organization whose board McKeon chairs. Since it began in the fall of 1999, the group has bought and renovated 21 condemned or vacant inner city homes. Residents are leasing the properties with the option to own. Funding for the project came partially from the City of Edmonton and the federal government's Residential Rehabilitation Assistance Program.

Frank Manzara, a Catholic on the board of the Edmonton Housing Trust Fund and a member of the Quality of Life Commission, said while governments contribute towards transitional housing for the homeless, they don't acknowledge the need for affordable housing for the working poor.

As a result, there are thousands of low-income people living in substandard housing. "We need affordable housing for the poor," he said. "Governments can support affordable housing programs."

Also needed is support from the entire community, led by governments, Manzara said. "Churches can do an awful lot more. They should start by working with community agencies that are struggling (to provide) affordable housing for the poor."

Betty Farrell, a board member of the Inner City Housing Society, said the lack of affordable housing is everybody's problem. "It's a problem of justice. We are called to look after one another." The Inner City Housing Society provides low-cost housing for 250 people and has a year-long waiting list.

"Affordable housing is urgently needed," she said, saying that in the inner city, it costs $300 to $400 to rent a decent house and many simply can't afford it. A woman with two children making $500 a month on social assistance can hardly afford a $300-a-month rent, she said.

Churches can help by telling their congregations the housing problem is an issue of justice that must be tackled not just within the churches but in the community, Farrell said.

Linda Winski of the Social Justice Commission and the Edmonton and District Council of Churches agrees, saying churches must create awareness of the housing crunch among the faithful. "There is a lack of awareness in parishes about the homeless and about the lack of affordable housing for the poor," she lamented.

"Parishes are not a place where you just go (for Mass) on Sunday. We must be witnesses within our own communities; we must find what are the housing needs in our own areas and tackle the problem."

McKeon believes society has moved into an age where "we don't expect governments to do everything.

"Given this, part of the solution is to build partnerships where community organizations and governments work together to solve the housing crisis."

Churches can be major players by creating awareness, but also by lending money for housing projects, he said.

"Churches sit on vast amounts of money (including retirement funds) that they can invest in social housing."

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