Residents demand face-time with minister over vacant buildings

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This article was published 10/12/2024 (270 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Inner-city residents who’ve witnessed many vacant buildings burn down after homeless people took shelter in them are calling on Housing Minister Bernadette Smith, their MLA, to do something about it.

“This housing issue is becoming a big, big problem,” said Darrell Warren, president of the William Whyte Neighbourhood Association.

The group sent a report to all three levels of government that shows 140 neighbourhood properties have derelict buildings or rubble and ruin left from fires.

They’ve met with their Mynarski ward Coun. Ross Eadie and Winnipeg North Liberal MP Kevin Lamoureux, but haven’t been able to meet with Smith, Warren said.

The association had hoped the province could help turn vacant homes into affordable housing for families before they end up beyond repair or burned down.

“She hasn’t really responded at all on the issue,” Warren said.

“As our MLA she should be addressing her constituents,” he said.

The neighbourhood is from Arlington Street to Main Street and Redwood Avenue south to Selkirk Avenue. “She is a housing minister and this is a housing issue,” said Warren. “For her not to weigh in, I don’t think that’s right.”

Smith was not made available for an interview. Instead, she issued a statement on Tuesday.

“As the MLA for the area, this has been a priority for me from Day 1,” Smith’s statement said. “Our government believes that everyone deserves a safe place to live, which is why I’ve been working with my colleagues to build more safe and affordable homes for Manitobans who need them.”

She took a shot at the former Tory government. The minister said the Tories left Manitoba with a deficit of social and affordable housing after selling hundreds of units: “Our government is working to make up for lost ground.”

She said after one year in office, the NDP has housed more than 1,200 families and has budgeted $116 million for social and affordable housing this year; hundreds of units are in development and under construction and more than 3,000 units being repaired “after years of neglect,” Smith said.

“We know there’s more work to do. That’s why we’ve been working closely with the City of Winnipeg to connect people experiencing homelessness with safe homes, addictions treatment and mental health supports.”

The City of Winnipeg said last week it’s monitoring 684 properties under the vacant buildings bylaw, including 526 residential and 158 commercial spots.

“If we could somehow be incentivizing and working with building owners to turn vacant buildings into affordable and accessible housing, that would be fantastic,” said Scott Wilkinson, deputy chief of the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service.

“If we have people living in homes and maintaining homes, then we’re not going see the same level of vacant building fires because we don’t see them to the same degree in inhabited homes,” said Wilkinson, who’s seen the problem get worse during his 30 years on the job in Winnipeg.

“Homelessness, mental health and substance abuse are driving a lot of our call volume,” Wilkinson said. Fires in vacant homes take longer to detect and are more involved by the time firefighters can respond to them.

“Anecdotally, it’s very clear: they pose a significant risk to our staff and to the community,” said Wilkinson. “Anything we can do to get everyone working together to better serve the needs of our vulnerable populations would be much appreciated.”

Eadie wants to see the revival of the Winnipeg Core Area Initiative that would include neighbourhoods such as William Whyte. All three levels of government would work together to address the problem of inner-city homes falling into disrepair, becoming vacant and being burned down.

“What needs to be done to get at the underlying conditions — that isn’t getting done,” he said Tuesday.

The core area initiative, which launched in 1981, resulted in $196 million being spent on downtown, including the construction of Portage Place, a nearby apartment complex, and studies that culminated in the development of The Forks.

A new version included in the city’s CentrePlan 2050, would encourage the construction of new housing downtown by waiving and reimbursing residential development fees of up to $2.25 million a year for three years, make downtown friendlier for pedestrians and cyclists with more trees, parks, festivals and concerts.

Eadie wants it to help struggling neighbourhoods become more attractive to families by investing in recreation and social programs for young people so they’re not lured by crime and drugs.

He knows couples without kids and single parents who are leery about moving into those areas, even though they’re affordable, because of crime and drugs. Increasing renovation grants to homeowners and landlords would boost property values and the city’s tax base, Eadie said.

The province could order Manitoba Public Insurance to look at providing property insurance in high-risk areas where homeowners and businesses have seen their private insurance costs triple, he said.

“We need more ownership in William Whyte to balance things,” Eadie said.

carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca