Investment in public housing isn’t enough to meet demand in Cape Breton, says researcher
A university researcher in Cape Breton is calling on the province to take urgent action to address the growing housing crisis on the island.
While the escalating numbers of unhoused people in the Halifax Regional Municipality are getting the lion’s share of provincial energy and funding, Catherine Leviten-Reid says other communities are getting overlooked.
“We have homelessness here at the similar scale of homelessness in the HRM, considering our population size,” said Leviten-Reid. “So we’re struggling with homelessness as much as HRM.”
The provincial and federal governments announced an $83 million investment into public housing two weeks ago. The money is intended to fund 222 new units built across the province — including several sites in Cape Breton.
A news release from Nova Scotia’s Progressive Conservative Party issued shortly after that announcement indicated the bulk of the money — $60 million — would be spent in HRM. A similar release indicated $8 million would be spent in Cape Breton Regional Municipality through “shared investment.”
Days later, Housing Minister John Lohr said the information in those releases wasn’t wrong, but also wasn’t final.
However, Leviten-Reid, an associate professor at Cape Breton University and a Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives research associate, said if only a small portion of the funds is coming to Cape Breton, it will not begin to address the need in the area.
“The scale is so small that it comes very far from addressing needs and if there was a serious commitment to this kind of model that we would see much, much bigger numbers than we’re seeing right now,” she said.
New investments announced
The province announced two new housing initiatives on Wednesday, a day before the legislature returned for its fall sitting.
A new “tiny home” community consisting of 52 units will be built in Lower Sackville. The units will cost $9.4 million for initial construction and will provide housing for 62 people.
The province will also spend $7.5 million for 200 temporary housing units built by Pallet, a North American shelter provider. Half of those units will be located in HRM.
Cape Breton waiting list
Officials with the Department of Municipal Affairs and Housing said 16 per cent of the people on the province’s waiting list for public housing live in the Cape Breton Island District.
However, the department refused an interview request regarding the number of affordable housing units coming to Cape Breton.
Erika Shea, CEO of New Dawn Enterprises in Cape Breton, said she was initially pleased with the promise of $83 million for public housing. But when she looked at the numbers, and compared them to the need on the island, she was disappointed.
She said the need for more public housing in Nova Scotia won’t be addressed by 222 new units.
“As we head into the winter, we have somewhere in the range of 40 to 50 people living every day in tents with nowhere to go,” said Shea. “This winter, we’re waiting for the provincial government to release their housing study, housing strategy.”
Information released under the Freedom of Information Act shows there were 1,240 people on the waiting list for public housing in CBRM as of Aug.16, 2023. Of those, nearly half — 597 — are seniors.
Both Shea and Leviten-Reid say it’s worrying that the province still hasn’t released its housing strategies for students and the general public, both now months overdue.
“So what is our plan to build affordable housing in this province? How many affordable units do we need and how are we going to get them built, say, over a 10-year period?” Leviten-Reid said. “How are we going to eliminate homelessness in this province?”
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