Tenants forced to find new homes?

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A group of seniors who live in public housing are afraid they’re being tossed out on the street by the very organization that’s there to house them. There are 2700 spots for public housing in the Niagara region. Those are all full and there is a waiting list, of another 4600 people or families who have been accepted, but cannot get in. But the group we spoke with today say that they have been in for years, and are now being pushed out in the cold.

Silvia Martin is 77 years old. She lives alone and has been in public housing for the past 11 years. But recently she got a letter which says that time is coming to a close. “This letter serves as formal notice that your household must move out of your public housing unit by February 29th, 2016.”

Right now her rent is tied to her income, which is a pension from her work in Canadian blood services. She pays the highest rent possible for public housing, and that is why she got the letter. She is one of a handful of residents at 20 Robinson in Grimsby who are paying the maximum $655 a month, and were told that they have 5 months to move out. They say that what Niagara regional housing considers market rent, is actually far below.

Across the Niagara region there have been 160 of these letters that have gone out to people who have been paying the maximum, but in speaking with administration, they said that these folks don’t necessarily have to leave.

Ellen Balmain is the CEO of Niagara regional housing and says that the letters are a part of their decision to enforce a law which says that those who pay the maximum for more than 12 months, have to move on.

“There might be some people who with significant income changes, that may well, really like living where they’re living, but can certainly afford the private market and I have other people waiting who absolutely can’t.”

She says that those who have a letter, and feel that they are being wrongly evicted, need to contact her office.

But for Silvia Martin, this situation has created a much larger question.

“Why have they not done something to make more space for people coming in who are low income, you know, renovate some of the buildings that are standing empty instead of putting people out of their homes.”

Martin says that she will appeal this letter to see if there is something that can be done, but some of the other people said that they are just looking to find another place to live