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Métis join program to fix northern housing

By: Staff Writer

12/12/2009 1:00 AM | Comments: 3

IN a first for Western Canada, the Manitoba government has partnered with the Manitoba Métis Federation to retrofit 645 public housing units in rural, northern and remote communities.

The province will spend $4.3 million on the project, which is expected to create 51 full-time jobs.

David Chartrand, president of the MMF, said the upgrades will add another 20 to 30 years to the lifespan of the houses, which are located in such communities as Poplar River, Camperville, Wabowden and Duck Bay.

The MMF manages 1,400 houses on behalf of the province in northern and rural areas, including the 645 that will be upgraded.

"I was very, very proud of our province" in responding to a federal challenge to contribute to the infrastructure project, Chartrand said in an announcement at the legislature on Friday.

He said Métis organizations in other provinces are envious. "We have other Métis governments that manage houses and they didn't get nothing (from their provinces)," he said.

Spending money to upgrade the houses will save a lot of money in the long run, Chartrand said. "If the money is not there and these houses... start deteriorating, it's going to cost a hell of a lot of money to rebuild new."

Premier Greg Selinger said the housing money is a good investment, especially during a recession.

The $4.3 million will go to the Community Housing Managers of Manitoba, a subsidiary of the MMF.

The investment is part of a $327 million, two-year federal-provincial housing program.

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition December 12, 2009 A4

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3 Comments

Posted by: Grubfoot

December 12, 2009 at 11:45 AM

This is obscene on so many levels. For one, since this is public housing, why is an overtly ethnic agency in charge of it, especially an agency that is a branch of an entity (the MMF) which refers to itself as a government and Nation? Could a non-Metis tenant expect the same attention to their household as a card-carrying Metis? Secondly, at $6,667 per house, after administration and labour, taxpayers will be lucky to see a coat of paint on these buildings. Third, since this is public housing can we safely assume that most of the residents are on social assistance and if so, shouldn't a condition of receiving social assistance be relocation to areas of employment if the recipient is capable of work?

Premier Selinger calls this "a good investment, especially during a recession." He's spending public money he doesn't have to do what can only amount to cosmetic repairs on houses in areas where there is little to no employment and he's paying an organization that thinks of itself as a Nation to do it and, whom, BTW, is currently suing the province and Winnipeg for billions. Good investment? I call it a downpayment on the Animal Farm.

It is also noteworthy that the polar bears get more money for their housing and they don't even vote. Maybe the bears won't bite the hand that feeds them; David Chartrand has accused the Canadian state of cultural genocide against the Metis.

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Posted by: Grubfoot

December 12, 2009 at 10:35 AM

I always wondered how the MMF got its funding. Evidently, operating a franchise of the provincial government pays very well.

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Posted by: Grubfoot

December 12, 2009 at 9:04 AM

Why wasn't this put to tender? Why is the Province of Manitoba doing anything that reinforces the belief that the MMF is a government? Since when did Metis become wards of the province who can't own their own homes and fix them? Does being Metis now equate with being dependent on the government?