Brandon Sun - PRINT EDITION
Shannon and Jim North stand outside of Massey Manor at the corner of Pacific Avenue and Seventh Street. The couple had been approved for one of the 14 Habitat for Humanity units and had put in more than 500 hours of sweat equity, only to find out the units are no longer going forward under the Habitat organization. (JILLIAN AUSTIN/BRANDON SUN)
A local family is "fuming" mad and "heart-broken" after their Habitat for Humanity condo deal fell through.
Jim and Shannon North had been approved three years ago for one of the 14 condos being built in the Massey Manor affordable housing project.
With much excitement at the prospect of finally owning their own home, the couple worked hard to put in well over the required 500 hours of "sweat equity," which they completed in February 2010.
"I was happy … We have a son, James who is five and it’s important that we have a nice place, that he has a bedroom," Shannon said. "We thought somebody was on our side for once."
The Norths were faced with many delays ever since, and ultimately, the Habitat for Humanity Brandon office was closed last June after 17 years in operation.
The decision to disaffiliate the local chapter came from the organization’s national office, after minimum operating standards were not being met.
The future of the Habitat condos in Massey Manor was unclear, and several families were still waiting and hoping to move in.
"When you have a family, you want to have a permanent home," Jim said.
"We couldn’t do it because we couldn’t get money through the bank, because of our income. Habitat was the only way that we were able to do it and they just shafted us."
David Morris, a project manager with Habitat for Humanity Canada, has been in Brandon since July to help wind up operations.
"When I got involved, we sat down right away and took a look at what it would cost a family to own one of the units in Massey Manor," Morris said. "And the number is … beyond what anyone would consider ‘affordable.’"
The other issue with the Habitat units is that it was supposed to end up as a condominium arrangement. Massey Manor is a project undertaken through a unique partnership between the Canadian Mental Health Association, the Brandon Friendship Centre and Habitat for Humanity.
The CMHA has 30 units on the first two floors, including five emergency homeless shelters, while the Brandon Friendship Centre has 14 rent-subsidized units, located on the third floor.
Morris said from a governance point of view, a condominium agreement would be untenable.
"CMHA owns half the building, and Brandon Friendship Centre owns a quarter and what it would mean is that the 14 homeowners of the fourth floor would each have less than two per cent voting rights in the condo agreement," Morris said.
Morris sat down with the five Habitat families in late July to explain the situation.
"Not only will this not work for families needing affordable housing, the model actually doesn’t work for Habitat, so that’s what put us in the position that we’re in," Morris said.
While it won’t work for Habitat, Morris said the setup could work well for another organization that provides affordable housing units. Morris said there are discussions happening with Manitoba Housing.
"No one wants to see units like that sitting empty," he said.
"From my perspective, the really good news — if there is good news in any of this — has been how the Brandon affordable housing community and in fact the affordable housing community across the province … are doing amazing work to make the best of what is clearly not a happy situation."
But for families like the Norths, the frustration and disappointment continue to mount.
"Enough is enough," Jim said. "I don’t want to wait another year, another two years, another three years down the road … I’m tired of waiting."
Morris said the goal is to eventually re-establish a chapter of Habitat in Brandon.
"It would not be an independent affiliate," he said. "It would operate as a chapter and that’s the model that’s being used across much of Manitoba."
Habitat still owns several properties in Brandon and the goal is to get back to building single-family homes.
For those families who have put in hundreds of hours in sweat equity, Morris said their applications for a future Habitat home would be given top priority.
"And most certainly they would not be expected to put in any additional sweat equity," he said.
» jaustin@brandonsun.com
Republished from the Brandon Sun print edition September 22, 2012
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A local family is "fuming" mad and "heart-broken" after their Habitat for Humanity condo deal fell through.
Jim and Shannon North had been approved three years ago for one of the 14 condos being built in the Massey Manor affordable housing project.
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A local family is "fuming" mad and "heart-broken" after their Habitat for Humanity condo deal fell through.
Jim and Shannon North had been approved three years ago for one of the 14 condos being built in the Massey Manor affordable housing project.
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