Mr. Speaker, affordable, quality housing is one of the foundations from which we build on to meet our other life goals. As children, healthy and safe places to live allow us to learn better, to do well in school, and help us to become successful as we grow into adulthood. Establishing stable, secure housing is a goal for most people from the time they begin to contemplate leaving their own parent's home. Over the course of our lives, from young adulthood through to becoming elderly, housing can be a concern. Many families, young and old, worry about the affordability, suitability, and adequacy of their homes. The importance of having a safe home to go to is never truly understood until someone doesn't have one. There is no denying that homeless people face many challenges, but the most urgent is where will they sleep and whether it will be safe.
It is through the lens of this continuum that we must look at housing. This multifaceted perspective also informed our approach when we reached out to users of housing programs, community and political leaders, Aboriginal governments, and residents of the Northwest Territories to gather their recommendations through the recently completed housing engagement survey.
I am happy to report that all communities contributed to the over 1,400 responses to the survey that were received. That's approximately one out of every 10 households in the Northwest Territories. Respondents were very knowledgeable and did not shy away from providing feedback on open-ended questions. There were approximately 6,000 write-in answers.
In many ways, the feedback reinforced situations that we are well aware of, for instance, that public housing is one of the most important programs offered but that improvements need to be made. Communications with tenants was noted as key to improving the program, specifically in the areas of customer service and rental counselling, which includes budgeting and maintenance courses. Homelessness was identified as a main priority, with many respondents citing the need for integrated supports offered in combination with housing. Housing for specific groups such as seniors, families, and persons with disabilities were targeted as priorities for many communities. Respondents also noted that homeownership is a critical component and lease-to-own programs by the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation need to be considered. Similarly, in market communities, many people felt that the Transitional Rent Supplement Program needs to be redesigned to be more effective to meeting the needs of the working poor. With respect to repair programs, people indicated that access to these programs needs to be improved and that there needs to be maintenance services for private homeowners in rural and remote communities.
Mr. Speaker, survey results have been compiled in a summary document. We have been using the survey to focus our efforts in the strategic renewal of the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation. Specific priority actions will be developed over the next year, with the express goals of addressing issues raised by residents and lowering core need.
At this time, we have been analyzing the survey results for nearly three months, and I am pleased to report that we are in position to announce immediate quick wins in terms of new programming and initiatives. In the near-term, some of the specific actions that we will be bringing forward include:
● An Aboriginal and local government housing innovation initiative which will enable these organizations to access support to develop and implement housing solutions of their own design.
● A targeted lease-to-own program designed to transition higher income and/or financially stable public housing tenants into homeownership, realizing homeownership goals of those tenants as well as freeing up much needed public housing for those that need it most.
● We will also be looking at repurposing vacant housing for other identified needs as identified within the community survey results.
● A new repair and renovation program is ready for implementation for seniors to support them to age in place. Repairs and renovations under this program will focus on energy-efficiency...
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