Jenny Itittakoose and John David are desperately seeking housing for themselves and their three young children. They're looking at three-bedroom units in the $1,000- to $1,200-per-month price range, even though they're not entirely sure they can afford it.
"We'll have to try," David said on Tuesday (Oct. 11).
They have no choice: On Oct. 31, they're set to be evicted from the Castle Rock Family Housing complex near downtown Squamish, where they've lived for the past nine years.
The two admit they've been late with the rent 23 times over the past few years, at least partly because on several occasions, there hasn't been enough money at the end of the month to pay the rent while keeping the electricity on - not with the $400 to $800 (two-month) B.C. Hydro bills with which they've been saddled (the most recent one was $200, much to the couple's relief).
They've had the power cut a few times, but on other occasions, they've chosen to keep the power on in the hope that their landlord for the 40-unit subsidized housing complex would cut them some slack when the rent money came a bit late.
And he did - until a couple of months ago. That's when Itittakoose and David were issued the eviction notice. They initially had until the end of September, then were given a one-month extension. A couple of weeks ago, their application for a further three-month extension was denied.
Castle Rock is a subsidized housing complex, with rents ranging from $183 to $642 per month depending on family size and the size of the rental unit, according to Leanna Buffie, manager of outreach services with Sea to Sky Community Services (SSCS), the non-profit agency that administers Castle Rock and a number of other subsidized affordable housing complexes in the corridor.
Itittakoose suffers from chronic arthritis that makes it difficult for her to work outside the home.
David, who is in his late 40s, has suffered five heart attacks over the past nine years and after the most recent one two years ago, underwent quadruple heart bypass surgery. He has difficulty walking up and down flights of stairs repeatedly and his doctor has ordered him to only work five-hour shifts in his job as a custodian, making it difficult for him to earn enough money to support himself, his partner and their children, aged 9, 5 and 2.
Still, David has been deemed able to work, so he's been unable to collect long-term disability. As well, whenever he has been on Employment Insurance, it hasn't been enough to pay the bills, David said.
"Even when he's at home, he's trying to help me clean, he bends over, he gets dizzy," Itittakoose said. "And his sleep is not good. If he gets stressed out, it scares me because I don't want him to die. We have three kids to look after."
Janice Brown, a family friend and representative of Church on 99 -one of two faith groups (the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is the other) that have been helping Itittakoose and David make ends meet for the past several months - says she thinks it'll be difficult for the couple to afford housing on the open market for long.
Itittakoose on Monday (Oct. 10) said she's not entirely sure either, but added that she and David are determined to find something.
"My mom is going to help us a little bit, but she's on disability herself. She can't do a lot, and I'd like to do it on my own," she said.
Brown said she'd like to see SSCS officials reconsider the decision to evict the family, even though the David and Itittakoose say they no longer wish to stay.
"This is a chronically low-income-housing family who is very needy, who should, in fact, be adopted by this community until they get on their feet," Brown said. "They need some hand-holding. Throwing them into the market for housing is like throwing them into the lion's den."
Brown said part of the problem is what she called a "conflict of interest" - i.e. the same board that's deciding which tenants to retain and which to evict also administers the program, Homelessness Outreach, to which the family's situation gets referred if they're unable to secure long-term housing.
"This is a unique situation," Brown said. "It's not a market situation where you have someone who's not paying their rent and it's resolved through the [Residential Tenancy] Act. They're not in the normal marketplace.
"What's missing is a third department that assesses their situation. How much has he been able to work with his health situation? How has their income because of his health affected their ability to pay the bills?
"The way it's set up at Sea to Sky Community Services now, it's like the dog chasing its tail, and that's not a healthy situation for the agency or for this family."
Buffie wrote in answer to a series of emailed questions from The Chief that because of client confidentiality rules, she couldn't discuss the family's specific situation.
In general terms, Buffie admitted that the Residential Tenancy Act - the legislation that applies in all landlord-tenant situations in B.C. - governs the procedure by which such situations are handled. However, she said, SSCS officials recognize there's a need to give tenants lots of leeway and always view eviction as an option only after other avenues have been exhausted.
In the case of significant rent-in-arrears situations, she wrote, "Sea to Sky Community Services looks at a number of individual options to assist in resolving an accumulated debt, such as a reasonable payment plan. In this example, it is only when all avenues of resolution have been exhausted that a Notice to End Tenancy would be considered."
Tenants who wish to dispute a Notice to End Tenancy can file for the matter to be adjudicated by an officer within the Residential Tenancy Branch, she said.
Buffie said the fact that the same board administers a number of programs, including both affordable housing and homelessness outreach, sometimes stretches SSCS's mandate and resources.
"This certainly does stretch our mandate; however, SSCS administers a number of fee-for-service programs, in addition to housing," she wrote. "These services are based on a relationship of a consumer/business exchange and, in order for SSCS to continue operation of these services, fees, rents, and other associated costs must be paid, otherwise the entire service or program is at risk for all families accessing them."
Buffie added that while other non-profit groups such as the Howe Sound Women's Centre Society and the Helping Hands Society sometimes help families that might otherwise fall through the cracks, it's up to individuals to seek those organizations' help.
Itittakoose said the couple greatly appreciates the help provided so far by the faith groups, the Squamish Food Bank, the Howe Sound Women's Centre and others. She said that despite the challenges, she hasn't given up hope.
"I have no idea what we're going to do," she said. After a pause, Itittakoose added, "I'm going to be out there looking every day."
With winter fast approaching, Brown said that if the family's housing situation remains in flux, she's hoping the community will step up to help them stay together and remain part of the community.
"If we get to Oct. 31 and there hasn't been a solution for them then my purpose in going to the paper is to involve the community in a way that would resolve their problem so that they're not without a home or trying to live in a van with three kids," she said.
