When Fran Hayes moved into a subsidized townhouse with her two children five years ago, she never expected to be homeless by July 1.
After receiving a notice of eviction from the Capital Region Housing Corporation (CRHC) in early March, the single mom now fears for the future of her family.
“My children are getting worried and upset that we don't have anywhere to go,” said Hayes. “I'm not sleeping properly at night and I'm stressed 24/7.
“We just need a roof over our heads.”
Two years ago, Hayes said the CRHC notified her that her three-bedroom unit, along with the 11 other townhouses in Campus View – a Saanich 12-unit family-oriented community near the University of Victoria – would be redeveloped in 2025.
Knowing that she would be wheelchair-bound by then, due to incessant chronic pain in her left foot, Hayes asked the housing provider if she should start looking for another unit. The CRHC replied that tenants would be provided with housing options.
Fast forward to March of this year, the single mom was given two options: an apartment in Saanich’s Gorge-Tillicum area and a unit farther up north in Sidney. Hayes said the two relocation options offered by the CRHC are not suited for her and her family’s needs.
“Because my son has ADHD and an oppositional defiant disorder, he's very loud, so we can't be in an apartment building because of that,” she said. “And we can't be out in Sidney because it's too far away and this isolates us from all of our [support system].”
On one hand, Hayes fears another eviction should she move to the Saanich apartment due to her son's condition. On the other hand, the Sidney option would dislocate her from her safety net in Saanich, preventing her son from attending his specialized school.
For these reasons, Hayes repeatedly told the CRHC she could not accept either option.
“I've offered to live in a two-bedroom with my two teens,” said Hayes. “I said, ‘Look, I will share a room with one of my children, just so that we can have a safe space to live,’ but they will not accept that.”
With discussions still ongoing with the housing provider, she said she's feeling strong-armed into making a decision.
“They’re pressuring me so much to take one of those two options,” said Hayes. “I don't drive, and I have… mental health issues, but they don't understand any of that.
“The way that I've been treated is just awful.”
Since receiving the eviction notice, the mother has contacted non-profits and housing advocates throughout the region and beyond but has not found a new place to stay.
“There's nowhere that’s able to help me,” said Hayes. “Because I'm not a woman fleeing abuse, the transition houses and other programs won't take [us].”
At a breaking point and running out of options, Hayes is now reaching out to private landlords for clemency in hopes of finding an affordable apartment while waiting for BC Housing’s assistance.
“I have a family and I’m gonna be homeless,” said Hayes. “The CRD is putting me and my kids out on the street and… they just don't care.”
While the CRHC cannot comment on individual cases out of privacy concerns, communications coordinator Jamie Gripich said that the organization has been discussing the Campus View redevelopment and relocation options with tenants for more than three years.
“Our staff ensures that all tenants are engaged and supported in accordance with the CRHC’s Tenant Relocation Policy,” reads his written statement. “At this stage, all Campus View tenants have been worked with individually to find an alternate accommodation within the CRHC portfolio.”
Gripich added that all eligible tenants will have the first right of refusal to return to Campus View once it is redeveloped, or they can choose to remain in their relocated unit.
In the meantime, the CRHC reiterated its commitment to offering continued support to transitioning tenants, all while respecting the Tenant Relocation Policy, he concluded.
While this decision falls within the bounds of legality, Together Against Poverty Society (TAPS) executive director Douglas King questions the regional government's approach.
“The CRD has very little obligation to find people a new home under the Tenancy Act if a redevelopment is occurring,” said King. “The only obligation the landlord really has is to give tenants a one-month compensation to help them with the process of moving.
“[According to] BC Housing's policies, there are supposed to be at least two offers given to a tenant for relocation. But what we often find is that certain tenants have really specific needs and there aren't that many units that can accommodate them. So there aren't really any realistic options to give them for transfer.”
In turn, this can lead to a “brutal” end between the regional housing provider and tenants with special needs, often including seniors and people with disabilities, King explained.
“The solution obviously shouldn't be that [tenants] are evicted without any support, but unfortunately, that does happen sometimes when a suitable transfer can't be found.”
In worst-case scenarios, an eviction can lead to the separation of families, resulting in “traumatic” outcomes for both the parents and children, observed King.
“What we often find when there's smaller children involved is that loss of housing like this could ultimately lead to the children being taken out of care of the parent(s) and put with the ministry because they don't have adequate housing,” he said.
Hayes's case, along with that of many other tenants evicted from the region's subsidized housing stock, ultimately highlights the system's flaws in providing housing for those in need, concluded King.
“The CRD is not a for-profit enterprise; it's an arm of the government, subsidized and paid for by the taxpayers,” he said. “There's certainly an expectation of the public that the people that are helped by the CRD are taken care of.”
“We don't have an infinite amount of subsidized units… but at the end of the day, the solution can't be just be to evict somebody without any support. If you've got someone who is dependent on support, there has to be an alternative solution. It can't just be, ‘We've offered you a different place, and it's your fault if you don't take it.’”
