The province is set to build new homes for low-income seniors and people with disabilities in Burnaby, but a disabled writer says she’s concerned the new project won’t meet the community’s needs.
Politicians announced that the Hall Towers – two B.C. Housing buildings built in Edmonds in the 1970s and currently home to 334 people – will be replaced by a new development on the nearby former home of the Edmonds 55+ Community Centre.
Current Hall Towers residents will be able to move into the new building or buildings and continue paying their current rent, Burnaby–Edmonds MLA Raj Chouhan said. Any units leftover will be provided by B.C. Housing to low-income seniors and disabled people, he said.
Chouhan did not give an estimated completion date but said construction should start within two years.
“We are very excited that we are working closely with BC Housing and the City of Burnaby to make sure people living here in the aged towers ... will be able to move in to a brand new facility that will provide safe and very secure housing for people,” Chouhan said.
It’s not yet known what will happen to the existing towers, NDP MLA Janet Routledge said.
George Nickerson, who has lived in one of the Hall Towers for 15 years, said his current housing situation is “very adequate but I think the new one is going to be even greater.”
“I think this is really good news,” he said. “It’s the best news I’ve heard in a long time.”
But Gabrielle Peters said she had concerns about the project and the province’s commitment to providing adequate housing for disabled people. The Vancouver woman, who writes about accessibility issues and identifies as “disabled” rather than a “person with a disability,” said simply replacing existing housing doesn’t help people currently in need of housing.
“It doesn’t necessarily create more housing for disabled people,” Peters said. “We need more housing for disabled people.”
Few specifics are known about the coming Hall Towers replacement, including the number of buildings and the size and design of the new apartments.
Peters said she hopes the builders get it right.
Peters lives in a building previously owned by BC Housing and currently operated by a non-profit. Her unit has been designed to accommodate someone who uses a wheelchair but it still isn’t big enough, she said. This means she can’t turn around in her kitchen or bathroom.
The size of Peters’ apartment also forces her to keep her bed against the wall, she said.
“You have to have a bed that you can wheel around. I can’t stand up and reach over a bed to put the sheet down,” she said. “If you believe that changing your sheets more than once in a lifetime is significantly important, then I don’t have proper housing.”
She hopes the Hall Towers replacement includes units big enough for disabled residents who use wheelchairs.
Peters said navigating a city not designed for someone using a wheelchair can be stressful, which makes coming home to an inadequate home that much more frustrating.
“I would like to be able to rest in my own home,” she said.
Peters also takes issue with BC Housing’s tendency to house seniors and disabled people in buildings separate from other members of the community. She said she has no problem with seniors but wants to see more of a mix of people around her.
“I want to kids running around,” she said.
