First Nation housing policy gets nod: Garden River recognized at Northern housing conference.

• Author: Kelly, Lindsay
• Position: CONSTRUCTION

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took on the role of housing supervisor for the Garden River First Nation in 2011, the community was operating with an outdated housing policy that wasn't serving the best interests of its members.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