After posting this I also emailed a copy of this letter to my mayor and city council and received a very positive and open response from the Mayor, Deb Kozak. I have attached her response (with her permission) at the end of my post.
Today I’m thinking about housing.
Who am I kidding, I am always thinking about housing. I’m tired of letting this be normalized. Tired of letting it be this acceptable part of society that no one talks about.
Right now I have a lovely little place to live just outside of town, thanks to the kindness of friends that have helped me figure out short term solutions. But constantly, my thoughts keep coming back to long term living arrangements. Scratch that… about AFFORDABLE, long term living arrangements.
I am considered part of the ‘working poor’. The fact that this is actually a term makes me angry and makes me question our society’s complacency to this situation.
I have a good, full time job in town and am actually making more than minimum wage but instead of this letting me flourish, letting me live, it feels as though I will be struggling for the rest of my working life. Right now I am living to work because I can’t honestly afford any of the rents that are out there. Many small/one bedroom private suites are being offered at prices that come to around 50% of my monthly income.
That is just rent. In some cases that does not include utilities. That is not taking food costs into account. Or if a rental is located outside of town then gas money to get to work. And don’t get me started on pets. I will not be pressured into giving up my pets in order to have a place to live. (I have two cats).
I know I am lucky to have a job and be able to buy food and pay for what rent I can. I am so thankful for that. I know there are people in much worse situations. But I also shouldn’t be considering (as I am) taking a second job (when I already work 40hrs a week) in order to cover the basic necessities. Shelter. Food. Necessities.
How am I supposed to feel anything but depression about my situation? How am I supposed to feel like part of my community or feel like I even have a chance to be my best self when I am living paycheck to paycheck? And I know there are a lot of folks out there just like me- struggling not to fall through the cracks, making enough money to be just getting by. This isn’t a healthy way to live.
And the answers from government should not be “we are looking into ways of fixing this” or “we have plans for the future”. This always seems to be the answer and nothing gets accomplished. Right now, in my hometown, the most upcoming, pressing plans are passing designs to revitalize our downtown core. Shouldn’t we be focusing on supporting the people that make the town what it is? Those people who work hard for the industries and businesses that make the town what it is? And this isn’t just happening in my town, this is everywhere. The people that make a community what it is, that work and live there, and then shop and support local businesses, need help now.
We need action, we need someone to pay attention at a government level and make some effective change NOW. Not in 5 years, not after another study. We need support now. Why aren’t we focusing on the real/biggest issue here?
Affordable housing for the people that live and work in a community is a necessity.
The following is the response from Nelson Mayor, Deb Kozak:
Dear Leannah,
I hear you. Affordable housing is an issue that Council has been grappling with for some time.
We have made some progress with:
1. Short-term rental bylaw to restrict the growth of AirBnB to encourage long-term rentals.
2. Called for tenders to create affordable housing above the youth centre.
3. Supported housing projects moving forward with Nelson CARES (43 new units being built on the site of the Lakeside Apts), supported Jim Reimer for the creation of housing in the Daily Bread facility etc.
4. Assessed the limited lands owned by the city to plan for affordable spaces with interested developers.
5. Bringing forward a Standards of Maintenance bylaw in June that will require landlords to improve substandard housing.
6. Established a housing committee to work with the priorities of council.
7. Reduced the sewer and water fees on secondary suites to 25% of what a home would pay. We encourage landlords to pass on those savings to renters, but do not have control over whether they do or not.
And there is more…..
Council cannot control the open market, but we do provide incentives to developers and homeowners to create affordable spaces.
You can help us by talking with people who share your circumstances and working together to appeal to groups like the landlords association, non-profits and developers to help us and you create affordable space.
The Urban Design Strategy is not taking funding from housing. This guidance document is a plan for the future as we continue to replace aging infrastructure (sewer and water). If you are digging up streets, it makes sense to make other improvements as you go. For example, our heritage light standards are failing. This plan includes options moving forward. Infrastructure is a responsibility of local government and funding comes from water and sewer fees. The other improvements we are planning come from grants at provincial and national levels.
Thanks for reaching out today Leannah, we do hear you and are working with people to address this urgent issue.