OSOYOOS TIMES-September 2, 2009

By Laurena Weninger – Osoyoos Times

There are packed boxes all over Susan’s living room, and unless something changes fast, she and her teenage son will soon be homeless – due to an eviction notice served by BC Housing.
“There’s nothing in there I can afford,” she said, nodding toward a recent copy of the Osoyoos Times newspaper.
While there are “for rent” advertisements in the paper, they are out of Susan’s price range.
Susan is not the woman’s real name; she asked not to be identified due to safety concerns.
For the last two years, she and her son have been living in a basement suite at the former Desert Valley Care centre on Jonagold Place.
Last January, the provincial government announced the former 10-unit residential care facility was being purchased by BC Housing for the purpose of filling some of Osoyoos’s housing needs.
According to the BC Housing website, they are “the provincial Crown agency that develops, manages and administers a wide range of subsidized housing options for those in greatest need.”
Sam Rainboth, a BC Housing spokesman, said a request for expressions of interest (EOI) went out on Aug. 28.
The agency is seeking a non-profit group or groups to come forward with a plan to develop the building in accordance with BC Housing’s mandate.
So far, the agency does not have any set parameters for how the location will be used.
“It’s up to the people who apply… we really just want to see what people propose,” Rainboth said.
The submissions can include proposals for basic affordable housing or housing for people with mental health issues and the submissions will all be reviewed starting mid-October.
The process may take several months and it is likely nothing will actually happen at the location until spring, Rainboth confirmed.
BC Housing bought the building under the condition it was a clear and vacant site, he said.
But they were approached by the seller, a local group of investors, who said the tenant – Susan – wanted to continue to rent the suite in the basement until the end of the school year.
Then, she asked for more time, Rainboth said, and the date for vacancy was changed again.
Now that BC Housing has launched the EOI, the agency wants the building empty.
“We took steps to give us a clear and vacant property, which included the eviction notice,” Rainboth said.
He said if Susan isn’t out by Sept. 1, the agency will be applying for a court order of possession, giving it authority to have a bailiff remove her.
“I think she has had a lot of time to find alternate arrangements,” Rainboth said, adding they have worked with her all along trying to help. “I think we have gone above and beyond our means to assist her… we don’t take eviction lightly.”
Neither does Susan.
She said there is just nowhere to go.
She had worked as a part-time activity coordinator at the care centre in the upstairs portion of the building, but she currently does not work because of a back injury.
She is on disability and the monthly budgeted amount she gets for housing – supposedly including rent, phone, heat and lights – is $570.
“Where in Osoyoos are you going to find a place like that?” she said.
The classified advertisements in the paper include listings for a two-bedroom apartment for residents who are 40 years old or older for $600 per month; a two-bedroom basement suite for $750 plus utilities; a half duplex for $950 and a three-bedroom home for $1,200 plus utilities.
Alex MacRae, a legal advocate for the Penticton and Area Women’s Resource Centre, said affordable housing is just getting harder to find.
BC Housing’s guidelines for a reasonable portion of income that should be spent on housing is 30 per cent of your income – but for those with very low income, it just doesn’t happen that way.
“People have to make decisions between paying their rent or paying for heat,” MacRae said. “Paying their rent or paying for food.”
MacRae said she doesn’t understand why Susan is being forced to move, when, at least for now, BC Housing’s plan is to leave the building empty.
“Why would BC Housing be mothballing it when there is a housing crisis?” she said. “It just doesn’t make any sense.”
MacRae is working with Susan to try to find a solution and Susan said part of that is trying to get an extension for the eviction.
A couple more months might help her to find a place that will meet the needs for her and her son at a price she can afford.
But if BC Housing follows through with its plan for the Sept. 1 eviction, it’s going to mean a big change for Susan.
“My son and I are about to become homeless,” she said. “We’re all packed up, and nowhere to go.”
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