Latest news with #supportivehousing
CTV News
3 days ago
- General
- CTV News
Contention growing over proposed supportive housing project in Sarnia
The message couldn't be more clear. Signs reading 'No Indwell- We are already doing our part,' have been erected around the very property on George Street in Sarnia that Indwell Community Housing hopes to develop a supportive housing project. Those same signs can also be found on front lawns throughout the neighbourhood. 'They're coming around all drugged up and everything. We take them out of the corner over there. I'm security there. Walking by. They're stealing all around here,' exclaimed resident Tim Huggett, who has one of the signs on his own front yard. He was referring to people who frequent a homeless shelter already located in the neighbourhood. Across the street, neighbour Kathy Demeester says she lives in fear. 'I don't know if it's booze, drugs, whatever. They have addictions, mental issues, and we just don't need any more here,' she said. Lambton County has donated vacant land at 333 George Street for Indwell to develop the supportive housing project. The Christian-based housing charity is proposing a building with 50 deeply affordable apartments, which would include wrap-around supports. In an interview with CTV News, Indwell CEO Jeff Neven said he hopes people can understand that what Indwell does is very different from a homeless shelter. 'Oftentimes we think about a shelter as somebody who needs a place to rest tonight. But then they have to go out onto the street and make their way and look for things like food and things during the day. Very different, what we're talking about is affordable housing. And with supports on site to help people to connect with services in the community,' said Neven. And the project does have supporters, such as Paul, who chose not to provide his last name. He disagrees with detractors. 'I don't know what our part is? What part are they doing that helps these people out? There's no price for human dignity, there's no price for a human anywhere. I lived on the streets. I know what it's like. I didn't have this kind of help. So I just think it's wrong. But these people say they're doing their part. They're doing nothing,' he said. Sarnia Mayor Mike Bradley says the city has not yet received a formal planning application for the Indwell project. In the meantime, he says he's been disappointed by the discord in the community over the proposal. 'Some of these emails I've seen on both sides of the issue aren't helpful. They're confrontational. They're often with information that is inappropriate or not factual. Our job is to sort through this and come up with a solution that's good for the community,' explained Bradley. Sarnia City Council is holding a special meeting on the Indwell proposal Monday.
CBC
31-07-2025
- Politics
- CBC
City councillor blames Vancouver mayor for rise in homelessness
The 2025 Point-in-Time Homeless Count in Greater Vancouver shows homelessness is up nine per cent from 2023. Vancouver city councillor Lucy Malone is blaming Mayor Ken Sim for this year's increased numbers, saying his freeze on net new supportive housing has worsened the situation.
CTV News
31-07-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Sault secures $5.3M for homeless housing, $600K for new builds
Northern Ontario Watch Sault Ste. Marie gets $600,000 from the province for exceeding housing targets, breaking ground on 189 homes last year and another $5.3 million in joint federal-provincial funds will build 14 supportive housing units for the homeless.
Yahoo
30-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
A Place to Live: 2 years in, Worcester housing development celebrates tenants' success
WORCESTER — As its second anniversary approaches, 38 Lewis St. ‒ A Place to Live, a facility offering permanent, supportive housing for people experiencing chronic homelessness, is celebrating its tenants' success. Alex Corrales, CEO of Worcester Housing Authority, the organization that oversees the 24-unit facility, explained how the model works. "Rent is based on income," Corrales said. "We use project-based vouchers and a project-based voucher means that the state will cover the difference from what a resident can cover. It's unique to every person." He continued, "So if rent is $900, we don't exceed more than 30% of a tenant's income. They may only be making $900 a month, then their rent is $300 and a project-based voucher covers the rest." This system has worked for James Lorentz, 44, who has been living at 38 Lewis St. for almost a year and working at an Amazon distribution center in Charlton and the DCU Center for the past eight months. Lorentz, originally from Pekin, Illinois, had been working as a truck driver in Denver for 10 years. He said after he began working for someone who was new to the industry, his truck broke down in Shrewsbury and he found himself stranded and homeless. "It's been uphill since I got here," Lorentz said. "I went from fighting for a place to put my mat on the floor of the Queen Street homeless shelter to here. It took a lot of grit and determination." Lorentz said he was also able to buy a car recently because of the support system at the facility. "There's nothing like buying your car," He said. "Having something for yourself." Lorentz had previously relied on public transportation and Uber rides to get to work, something that wasn't always easy. Lorentz said he would get off work in Charlton at 4:30 a.m., but because the bus system wouldn't start running until 6:30, at the end of a long shift he would turn to rideshare services instead of waiting two hours for a bus. In addition to buying a car, Lorentz said he has dreams that he is confident A Place to Live can help him accomplish. He eventually wants to go to college and study mental health and music. Dana Dockery, 65, has lived in Worcester his entire life and says 38 Lewis St. was his favorite place yet. Dockery recalled receiving a call on Christmas Eve from his lawyer, who had helped him with several housing applications, informing him he would be moving to A Place to Live. Dockery said he was in shock, holding his hand in the shape of a phone and recreating the scene. "Run that by me again?" he said. He moved a little over a month later Jan. 27. He said he remembers seeing his room and thinking, "Now this is what I've been looking for. This place is beautiful. Nice and quiet." Dockery underwent open-heart surgery seven months ago and also has a bad back, leaving him unable to work, he said. Similar to Lorentz, Dockery said he has experienced positive support during his time living at 38 Lewis St. Dockery said that he knows there is always someone in the building to help him out when he needs it, despite saying he mostly likes to keep to himself. He said whenever he has a problem, such as a broken air conditioner, needing his sink repaired or replacing a lost key, he knows it will be handled promptly. "I really love it here. It's a great place," Dockery said. Corrales said the project wasn't always easy; nowhere else near Worcester has a similar housing model and staff building trust with tenants was initially challenging. "We've had to ask folks to leave for the health and safety of other residents in the building." Corrales added. Lorentz and Dockery aren't A Place to Live's only success stories. Corrales said all 24 units are filled and there hasn't been any resident turnover the past few months. He calls it, "a true milestone." This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: A Place to Live: Worcester Housing Authority solution for homelessness Solve the daily Crossword
CBC
21-07-2025
- Health
- CBC
Airborne fentanyl at some B.C supportive housing sites a risk to workers, says report
The presence of second-hand fentanyl smoke is so severe at some British Columbia supportive housing facilities that workers cannot escape "substantial exposure," even if they stay in their offices and don't venture into hallways or tenants rooms. That is the among the findings of tests conducted at 14 British Columbia supportive housing sites, results that contributed to the province's decision to form a working group aimed at tackling safety issues — including second-hand fentanyl exposure. The assessments, conducted by Sauve Safety Services for B.C. Housing, tested facilities in Vancouver and Victoria — finding elevated levels of airborne fentanyl even in the main office of all three buildings tested in Vancouver. In a statement, the B.C. Ministry of Housing and Municipal Affairs said it takes the concerns about possible worker exposure to airborne fentanyl seriously. "We'll be working with our partners to ensure providers can take fast action to protect staff and tenants in supportive housing," the statement said. Medical experts say breathing in the second-hand smoke poses similar risks to breathing in smog, and that the risk of overdose from it is extremely unlikely. In June, the province announced the formation of a working group to tackle safety in supportive housing, including second-hand exposure to fentanyl. The announcement of the group came after a number of recent incidents in the housing units, including a June 11 fire at the former Howard Johnson hotel in Vancouver that injured two people. The ministry said at the time that testing on the 14 facilities in Vancouver and Victoria showed some may be "more likely to have elevated levels of airborne fentanyl, above the limit WorkSafeBC has established." Details can be found in more than 600 pages of assessments conducted by Sauve. It recommended that all three Vancouver facilities improve ventilation to the main office, as well as mandate workers to wear respiratory protection in some cases and strengthen smoking policy enforcement for tenants. 'Grossly exceeded' regulatory limits In its assessment of the Osborn facility on West Hastings Street, testers found occupational fentanyl exposures over a 12-hour shift that "grossly exceeded applicable regulatory limits," including WorkSafeBC's limits. Airborne fentanyl levels at the other facilities in Vancouver — Al Mitchell Place on Alexander Street and Hotel Maple on East Hastings — also exceeded exposure limits in office spaces. The assessments also found higher concentrations in the air of fluorofentanyl, a "structurally modified" version of fentanyl that can be twice as potent as the original opioid, at all three Vancouver facilities. In the 11 tested Victoria facilities, some main offices were found to offer "protective environments" or had fentanyl levels below regulatory limits, while others exceeded them and created "significant health risks" for staff. 'Similar to smog pollution' Dr. Ryan Marino, a medical toxicologist with University Hospitals in Cleveland, Ohio, is an expert on addiction medicine and the medical toxicology of opioids such as fentanyl. He said that while he had not seen the specifics of the assessments, the main risk from second-hand fentanyl smoke is "breakdown products" that result when the substance is burned, which can be directly noxious or toxic to a person's airway surfaces. "It's actually very similar to smog pollution and can give people pretty significant irritation, coughing," Marino said. "[It] could exacerbate asthma symptoms, that kind of thing. And so that is a very real concern, I would say." However, he cautioned against overreacting to the threat of absorbing fentanyl or fluorofentanyl through the air, since the opioid does not suspend in an airborne fashion and any particles in the air must be carried through wind or physical motion. "For someone who's not using drugs, not ingesting anything in any way, the risk of a second-hand exposure, toxicity, overdose, whatever you want to call it, from fentanyl is pretty close to zero," Marino said. University of B.C. adjunct Prof. Mark Haden agreed, adding that he believes the problem of tenants smoking fentanyl in supportive housing is a direct symptom of drug prohibition — a more fundamental issue that should be tackled. "This is a completely predictable outcome of a social policy that we need to fix," said Haden, who referred to fentanyl in a health-care setting as a medicine. "We wouldn't have people using fentanyl in their rooms if they could go downstairs to some health facility and talk to a health-care worker or a nurse who provided these kind of medicines within the context of a health service." The province has said it is working with the B.C. Centre for Disease Control, WorkSafeBC and B.C. Housing to develop new exposure reduction guidance at supportive housing facilities, with the focus on protecting the workers and tenants in these buildings.
