Garden River recognized at Northern housing conference

When Anne Headrick took on the role of housing supervisor for the Garden River First Nation in 2011, the community was operating with an outdated housing policy that wasn’t serving the best interests of its members.

The community, which has about 1,000 on-reserve members, wanted better, Headrick said. Better transparency, better programming, better maintenance of its properties, and better organization.

"We had high demand for houses,” Headrick said. “A lot of people had to move off the reserve to meet their needs; we had a bit of overcrowding in some of the houses. The needs and the signs were definitely there.”

So, last year, after five years of development, Garden River revealed its revamped housing policy, which, even in a short time, has made a remarkable difference.

Rent arrears have been reduced significantly, and the housing department has been able to achieve a 97 per cent rent collection rate. The community is also getting ready for new housing construction, following an eight-year building suspension.

The changes were so dramatic, Garden River and its housing department were recognized in February with the 2016 Community Housing Recognition Award during the 14th annual First Nations Northern Housing Conference.

"Other people recognizing that Garden River First Nation is doing a good job and being recognized for the work that we've done, it's so nice," Headrick said. "It's such a nice compliment to our hard work."

Getting to this point hasn't been easy. The housing department spent 18 months reviewing the program to determine what was lacking and what the community’s needs were. Then it set to work.

Carrie Zeppa was hired on as tenant relations officer to liaise between the department and residents. Zeppa is responsible for working with tenants renting homes under the Canadian Mortgage Housing Corp.'s (CMHC) On-Reserve Non-Profit Housing program, doing everything from collecting rent to co-ordinating interviews to educating tenants on home maintenance.

"It's made such a huge difference, and it's allowed us to focus on getting other opportunities here for housing and for our First Nation members," Headrick said.

Greg Solomon, meanwhile, was hired as the construction maintenance co-ordinator. He oversees the construction of new units, ensuring all work is done to code, but also does most maintenance on the rental units. Housing assistant Charlotte Boissoneau rounds out the department of four.

Garden River is home to more than 500 units; of those 148 are managed by the community, while the remainder are privately owned. The community employs local contractors for constructing its homes, which in turn provides work for local residents.

"The contractors that we use are excellent; they know their stuff and we stand by what they build," Headrick said. "We're very proud to say we use our own contractors to do all of our buildings."

There are currently about 50 names on a waiting list for housing, and even though that’s a decrease from previous numbers, Headrick said they’re striving to improve.

“Obviously, it’s not where we want it to be,” she said. “We don’t want anybody in need of a house, but that will take some time.”

Much of the need exists for students going to school in nearby Sault Ste. Marie, young families just starting out, and community Elders. Progress is being made.

The community just completed four independent living units for Elders, and over the next year, Garden River plans to build 10 more units. Four will be duplexes, each with two two-bedroom units; the other two will be single-family, three-bedroom homes.

Garden River currently has an application in to the CMHC to build four more units; Headrick expects to hear this summer if the community has been approved.

Over the last three years, five homes have been privately built through the on-reserve mortgage program, and several more have been renovated.

Headrick is buoyed by the priority given to First Nations housing in the Federal Budget, released on March 21. In it, the Trudeau government has earmarked $554.3 million over two years, starting in 2016-2017, for new construction and the retrofitting of existing on-reserve housing.

The government has also promised to work with First Nations to develop a long-term plan for the construction and maintenance of on-reserve housing as part of a broader National Housing Framework.

“I think First Nations are saying, ‘We don't want substandard housing; we really want our houses to be at the top and our programs to be at the top,’” Headrick said.

“I think we’re at a very exciting time, so it’ll be interesting to see how things roll out from here, and I’m so proud we’re a part of that.”

Garden River is now working on a 10-year strategic plan to plan for its future needs, and Headrick said the ultimate goal is to be a model for other communities to emulate.

"(The award) was such an honour, but we're not done yet," she said. "We're definitely striving to get up there."