Meet Jack, an imaginary Squamish senior. He has lived in Squamish for years, has a two-storey home, but is now retired, is less flush with cash and perhaps less mobile, so he wants to downsize within Squamish. For Jack (or Diane, as the case may be) the reality is there is almost nowhere for him to go, at least not right away.
This is the real life situation of many of the seniors Laura Modray, administrator for Squamish Senior Citizens Home Society, sees almost daily.
“There are a lot of seniors, baby boomers especially, who are living in their single-family homes in the Highlands or in Brackendale, and they are only using maybe one third of their house… but they have nowhere to go,” she said.
The majority of people she sees, however, are not like Jack; they are renters and live in small units they can no longer afford.
“For a senior, $800 or $900 a month is not really affordable when you look at affordability being 30 per cent of your income,” she said.
Modray is administrator for two seniors housing complexes in Squamish: The Manor, which has 50 units, and the The Cedars, which has 20 units. There is currently a waitlist of 59 applicants waiting to get into either complex. Modray said the society recently stopped accepting applications from people who smoke, which reduced the waitlist by about 28 applicants.
“We do provide pretty much the only affordable housing for seniors in Squamish, besides Riverstones,” she said.
The Manor is subsidized by BC Housing, so rent is geared to income.
“So it is 30 per cent of your income, and that is what you pay towards rent and BC Housing picks up the rest,” she said.
Monthly rents at The Cedars and The Manor run from $520 for a bachelor unit to about $635 for a two-bedroom.
According to Modray, no one has moved out of The Cedars for 18 months.
“Once people come in, they don’t leave,” she said.
There is currently about a two-year wait for a unit in either complex.
Modray said she sees some couples, but mostly single seniors, and the genders are pretty equally split between men and women.
Pets are not allowed in either complex.
What Squamish needs is far more affordable housing, said Modray.
Councillor Susan Chapelle agrees.
“As our community grows and becomes less affordable, we are in desperate need of remembering our seniors population,” she said.
“Aging in place is a right... We need more seniors co-op housing, secured space and funding for palliative care and hospice programs.”
A plan is in the works to eventually build a Squamish Senior Citizens Home Society mixed housing complex on the land adjacent to The Cedars, Modray said, but she couldn’t estimate when shovels would be in the ground.
Mayor Patricia Heintzman said seniors housing is a problem that is on the district’s radar.
“Seniors’ housing specifically is a growing issue as boomers age over the next 15-20 years. As we get to work with the Affordable Housing Task Force, this will be one of the many important issues we will tackle,” she said. The task force will be appointed this week, Heintzman said.
The province opened Shannon Falls Retirement Residence in downtown Squamish in 2010 and has invested more than $2.3 million in subsidized housing for the district in 2013/2014 including for 250 senior households, according to a provincial spokesperson.
“We’re partnering with municipalities, non-profit societies and other community groups to implement strategies that create more affordable housing for British Columbians in greatest need. British Columbia’s housing strategy is one of the most progressive in North America, and we remain committed to finding solutions that work for Squamish and communities across the province,” said Rich Coleman, deputy premier and minister responsible for housing.
