Seniors in social housing deserve safety, security

A growing number of low-income seniors living in social housing (government and non-profit housing) are bearing the brunt of the provincial government’s homelessness strategy.

As pressure mounts to house precariously housed and homeless people, 55-plus buildings are often where they end up, and when you place people with complex needs and inadequate supports with vulnerable seniors who mainly need safe, affordable and stable housing, the outcome can be disastrous.

As co-chairs of the Seniors Working Group for the Right to Housing Coalition, we’ve heard from seniors who live in these buildings and, up until recently, have been content with their living arrangements.

In fact, we are learning that seniors in these 55-plus buildings tend to develop a sense of community, with informal networks of mutual aid and support as a common practice.

Things have changed with the arrival of residents who need to be housed but who also need major supports to deal with addictions and mental health issues.

We have heard about drugs being sold and used on the premises, needles in the hallways, violence, threats and name-calling toward longtime residents, destruction of property, human excrement and garbage in common areas, etc. Seniors are scared, traumatized and overwhelmed at finding themselves living in such circumstances.

We have heard from seniors about the negative impact on their mental health and can only guess at the circumstances of less outspoken seniors who isolate themselves inside their apartment for fear of what they will find on the other side of the door.

So far, we know of four 55-plus buildings where this is a serious problem. There are probably more.

Seniors in our group understand that everyone needs to be housed and are in favour of people getting the help they need. What they do not understand is why this major social issue has been foisted on low-income seniors.

Some have serious health problems and mobility restrictions and they cannot just up and move to more expensive private-market housing.

The situation is untenable and needs to be addressed. Surely, we can agree that it is unfair to ask vulnerable seniors to give up their own security as a response to the serious social problem of homelessness.

The provincial government has vastly underestimated the need for supports for people coming off the streets.

The Manitoba government’s Your Way Home plan is relatively new and it is beginning to get at this issue. For example, the province is collaborating with community-based non-profit organizations to provide housing with 24-7 supports.

There is early evidence that this is an effective approach. But there is not enough, as evidenced by the increasing number of high-need homeless and precariously housed people being placed, unsupported, in housing that was for many years designated specifically for low-income seniors.

Earlier this year, the Manitoba government released Pathways Forward: Manitoba’s Poverty Reduction Strategy.

Ironically, seniors are identified as one of three priorities. The stated goal is, “To build a future where all seniors have the support, resources and opportunities they need to live with dignity, financial security and independence, ensuring no one is left behind as they age.”

Low-income seniors in 55-plus housing are not feeling safe, secure and supported right now. A good place to start would be to ensure that low-income seniors who count on social housing as a safe and dignified place to land get exactly that.

» Lynne Fernandez and Erika Wiebe are co-chairs of the Seniors Working Group for the Right to Housing Coalition. This column was originally published in the Winnipeg Free Press.