HOUSING AGAIN • Bulletin
The Housing Again Bulletin, sponsored by Raising
the Roof
as a partner in Housing Again.
A monthly electronic bulletin highlighting what people are doing to
put
housing back on the public agenda in Ontario, across Canada and
around the
world.
Our web sites are:
Housing Again
http://www.housingagain.web.net
Shared Learnings on
Homelessness
http://www.sharedlearnings.org
/
http://www.liaison-itineranceorg
Raising the Roof
http://www.raisingtheroof.org
If you have any tips for the
Bulletin please e-mail:
annemariea@nrupublishing.com
or
haille6@rogers.com
Number 84 September 1,
2005
The Housing Again Bulletin, sponsored by Raising the
Roof
as a partner in Housing Again.
A monthly electronic bulletin highlighting what people are
doing to
put housing back on the public agenda in Ontario, across Canada
and
around the world.
Our web sites are:
Housing Again
file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Writer/Local%20Settings/Temporary%20Internet%20Files/Content.IE5/OQM309MI/<http://www.housingagain.web.net>
Shared Learnings on
Homelessness
http://www.sharedlearnings.org%20/
http://www.liaison-itinerance.org/
Raising the Roof
http://www.raisingtheroof.org/
If you have any tips for the Bulletin
please e-mail:
annemariea@nrupublishing.com or
mailto:haille6@rogers.com
---------------------------------------------------
In
this Issue:
Community Profile: WICA Program
in Quebec Helps People at Risk of Homelessness Stay
Put
Feature: Housing Ministers to Meet with Housing Advocates in
Halifax
News Briefs: Housing Research Grants Available; Eva’s Innovation Awards
Launched
---------------------------------------------------
Community
Spotlight:
WICA Helps People Stay in Their
Homes
West Island Citizen
Advocacy—WICA—in Pointe-Claire, Quebec received $30,000 recently from the
federal and provincial governments to hire a community worker who will help new
tenants of a housing project integrate and settle into their new homes.
The funding will assist people at risk of homelessness by keeping them in
their homes as part of the “l’Île des amis 2” housing project. WICA, a
non-profit charitable organization, helps care for people with social
integration problems by pairing them with citizen volunteers and has already
made a name for itself in its community as a result of its vision, leadership
and management.
Founded in 1976,
WICA has helped bring about 460 pairings, which have aided seniors, people with
intellectual and physical disabilities, and people living with mental health
problems.
“This project will
help approximately 15 socially and financially disadvantaged people who are at
risk of homelessness,” said Mary Clare Tanguay, director of WICA. “Our job is to
support them during this transition period and to promote their long-term
stability and integration into the community.”
“It may be something
as simple as taking someone out to lunch or spending quality time with a person
who may need a friend,” Tanguay said. “Volunteering with WICA benefits not only
our proteges, but our advocates as well.”
In July 2003, the
Government of Canada and the Government of Quebec signed a cooperation agreement
regarding the SCPI and the Regional Homelessness Fund. This agreement respects
the jurisdictions, policies and priorities of both governments with regard to
homelessness. A joint management committee oversees the coordination of this
agreement and is supported in its work by an advisory committee composed of
representatives from both levels of government and from community organizations.
http://www.westislandcitizenadvocacy.com/
--------------------------------------------------
Feature:
Housing Ministers to Meet with Housing Advocates in
Halifax
Housing Again has learned that the
annual federal-provincial-territorial housing ministers’ meeting has been
scheduled near Halifax on September 22-23 to discuss the new housing framework.
However, the meeting location—about an hour and a half outside of Halifax—has
posed some travel difficulties for both ministers and advocates. Although
housing advocates were initially notified that the usual stakeholder
consultation during the meeting was cancelled, it appears the meeting—although
the time allocated is shorter than what has been offered in the past—is back on
the agenda.
“It was always out
intention to meet with stakeholders as they are a vital resource to the
ministry,” Federal Housing Minister Joe Fontana told Housing Again.
The meeting is
scheduled on September 22 from 3:00 – 5:00 p.m. – the first hour is set aside to
meet with Aboriginal leaders and the second hour with other housing advocates.
The location may be changed to be more accommodating, promised Minister
Fontana.
The ministers
responsible for housing meet each year to help the federal government address a
range of housing needs across Canada. The meeting is held in the province of the
co-chair of the bi-lateral co-ordinating committee—Nova Scotia’s Housing
Minister David Morse co-chairs the group this year along with Minister Fontana.
Advocates are hoping
to use the opportunity to press the federal government to forward the additional
housing dollars in Bill C-48 (the
NDP-Liberal budget deal) to municipalities without delay. According to the deal
struck between NDP Leader Jack Layton and Prime Minister Paul Martin, the
additional money is contingent on the government having a surplus in the budget.
New predictions, however, suggest that there will be more than enough surplus in
the budget.
Housing advocates
across the country have also been sent invitations to sit on a National Housing
Advisory Board. Its first meeting is scheduled for October 3 in Ottawa.
At the
federal-provincial-territorial housing ministers’ meeting last November, the
ministers agreed that future collaboration with the federal government would be
guided by a set of proposed principles. These included taking a “comprehensive
approach to housing through a continuum of shelter and related services.” The
continuum included building new housing, rent subsidies and supplements,
supportive housing and repairing existing housing stock.
The federal
government has released a discussion document on the housing framework, which
National Housing and Homelessness Network Co-chair Michael Shapcott says
contains a running list of all recommendations and suggestions heard during the
consultations held earlier this year. Some housing advocates have raised
concerns that the new framework will not be as comprehensive as once
thought.
“The document posted
by the federal government does not give us a sense of what direction the housing
framework will take or what it would look like,” Shapcott said. “We need to see
capital
subsidies for new affordable
housing, rehabilitation for
abandoned and sub-standard buildings, rent-geared-to-income assistance for
low-income households, and support
services for those who need help accessing and maintaining their
homes.”
The ministers
meeting later this month follows a recent Ontario announcement made by Minister
Fontana, Ontario Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister John Gerretsen, who is
expected to take a lead at the meeting, Association of Municipalities of Ontario
president Roger Anderson and Toronto mayor David Miller. The group signed a
memorandum of understanding on the allocation of $402 million in federal and
provincial housing dollars. www.mah.gov.on.ca
--------------------------------------------------
NEWS
BRIEFS:
Housing Research Grants Available
CMHC’s External
Research Program is offering funding assistance to help Canadian researchers
carry out research investigations on topics related to housing. The intent of
the program is to encourage and draw out new ideas, innovative solutions, and
better understanding of housing issues. ERP grants, which may be up to $25,000,
are available for a limited number of research projects each year. Once the
research studies are completed, CMHC will publish and disseminate the results
through the Canadian Housing Information Centre www.cmhc.ca/en/library/index.cfm. Applications
must be sent in by midnight October 31,
2005.www.cmhc.ca/en/prfias/gr/exrepr/index.cfm
Eva’s Innovation
Awards Launched
As part of their
National Initiative Program, Eva’s Initiatives is launching its first Innovation
Awards with the generous support of CIBC, to recognize the incredible work being
done by organizations across Canada in assisting homeless youth.
Based on the
experience in developing Eva’s Phoenix, the staff and Board at Eva’s Initiatives
know that awards and citations draw attention to innovative programs and can
assist greatly in building partnerships and securing funding. Each community has
different needs and different approaches to meeting those needs, but one common
fact remains – virtually all communities across Canada, large and small, are
struggling to provide effective support to help homeless youth become
self-sufficient.
The Innovation
Awards will be granted to three organizations that:
- Demonstrate innovation in
delivering services to homeless youth;
- Successfully use partnerships
to develop, implement or operate services;
- Deliver services that help
youth who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless to achieve greater
self-sufficiency and reduce their chances of experiencing homelessness in the
future;
- Offer services that integrate
two or more of the following: housing, education, vocational training,
employment, health and addictions supports, life skills, or other
interventions aimed at assisting homeless and at-risk youth to become
self-sufficient.
A
seven-member panel will review the submissions and select the winners. This
review panel is made up of individuals from across Canada who are knowledgeable
about services for homeless individuals. Applications are due by October 28,
2005 and are available online at www.evasinitiatives.com starting September 12. For more
information contact: Deborah Hierlihy, Project Coordinator – Eva’s Innovation
Awards (awards@evas.ca).
SUBSCRIBE/UNSUBSCRIBE:
The Housing Again e-bulletin is distributed by e-mail free of
charge
monthly. To subscribe or unsubscribe, log onto the main page at
www.housingagain.web.net You'll see
the Bulletin's
subscribe/unsubscribe box at the bottom right hand of the
page.
Please circulate this e-bulletin to your friends and colleagues.
---------------------------------------------------