Housing Saves Lives (March 2023)
Every day, I get calls or emails from people asking about how we can best help those experiencing homelessness. During the height of the pandemic, we started to see a greater number of people experiencing homelessness and those individuals were setting up encampments across the entire city, not just the downtown core. This is something that everyone wants to address because we know that many people can be an unfortunate event away from finding themselves in a similar situation.
Now you have heard me say this over and over again but I need to say it again:
Housing is provincial jurisdiction.
While this is provincial jurisdiction, the City of Edmonton has tried to help fill in gaps over the years. Since before my time on council, Edmonton has provided funding to help build affordable housing. Until a few years ago, most of the housing built was primarily for those who needed something more affordable instead of those who have complex needs (ex: addictions and mental health support).
Over the years, there were very few units of 24/7 permanent supportive housing built. This type of housing is different because as the name suggests, there is 24/7 support on site to help residents who have more complex needs. I’ve written other posts about the benefit that 24/7 supportive housing has on safety and for our healthcare system so I won’t repeat that here but you can read about that using the link below in the comments.
After years of inaction, across many different provincial governments, Edmonton City Council decided to increase our investment in housing and to focus those new resources on 24/7 supportive housing. In summer 2020, City Council approved a little over $30 million to build 215 units of 24/7 supportive housing in 5 different locations across the city. From the beginning of the year and over the next month or so, all of these residences will be open to people experiencing homelessness who require significant ongoing support.
Today, I had a chance to tour two of those sites. One in King Edward Park and one in Terrace Heights. The other three are in Westmount, Inglewood, and McArthur. The one furthest along was Hope Terrace in King Edward Park which is being operated by Bissell Centre. This building is home to 34 adults who have FASD. They started with 16 residents in December and have moved in about 1 new person per week since January as it takes time to help each person get settled as most everyone in this building has been without a home for a very long time.
It’s exciting to see these buildings open up. These are a direct result of City funding so every Edmontonians has played a part in helping to create these new permanent homes for their neighbours. We know that 24/7 supportive housing saves lives and money. We also know that many people who need this level of care and support will need it for most of their lives. Bissell Centre expects many of these residents to live their entire lives in Hope Terrace.
I want to end by sharing a story of one of the residents who calls Hope Terrace home. This story came up because I asked the person running this building, Nola, how she would respond to a comment I can get from time to time, “Some people will never want to live in a home.” The story she shared helps explain the importance of ensuring people have the appropriate type of housing because with the right support, people are able to stop living on the streets in time.
Nola shared the story of a resident who has been experiencing homelessness for 30 years. During that time, they have been placed in different housing but never with the ongoing support that people get in 24/7 supportive housing. Unfortunately, without that ongoing support, they were not able to get the care they needed and would find themselves back on the street.
In Hope Terrace, residents have been able to start working on their needs and accomplishing goals. This resident's first goal was to sleep 3 nights a week in their new home with the remaining 4 out on the streets. That might sound odd to many of us but this person has only ever known living outside for most of their life. Living inside is a major change and yet because they receive 24/7 support, they are able to slowly begin a recovery process.
This individual is someone that would have never believed they could have a home of their own but because they are getting care in 24/7 supportive housing, their life is changing for the better. That’s what is possible when people get the right care and support.
These 215 units aren’t enough. Even with the federal government funding back in the summer of 2020 that helped create another 240 units, that’s still not enough. In our budget deliberations back in December, council approved over $120 million to build affordable and 24/7 supportive housing. We will also see federal funding provided very soon to make sure that money goes even further.
While the ideal scenario would be for the provincial government to fund the construction of these units since it is their responsibility, at a minimum, we will need their commitment to fund the operation of these 24/7 supportive housing units. When we made the decision back in 2020 to build the units we did, we took a gamble that the provincial government would approve the ongoing operational funding and although it took a lot of time, former Premier Kenney did make the announcement for the funding on October 1st. Ideally, we need that commitment for the next batch of units much earlier so housing providers can start the work necessary well in advance of opening.
Housing saves lives. Housing saves money. The evidence is clear. I’m glad we have been able to help fill gaps and we will keep doing what we can because it’s the right thing to do. As we come up to the provincial election, please make sure you are asking candidates about how they will not only address housing issues, but also shelter operations, addictions support, and mental health support. We want to help whoever forms the next provincial government but we need the next provincial government to take the lead on this so that more lives can be saved.
