Digby and Area Affordable and Sustainable Housing Group
June 13, 2013 – DARC Board Room
In attendance: John Roswell (Digby Clare Mental Health Volunteers), Bernadette MacDonald (TCWC), Sister Bonnie (Bethany Bargain Bin), Roberta Journeay (TCWC), Suzanne White (Juniper House), Amy Theriault (Schools Plus), Joy Warner (Advisory Council on the Status of Women), Lisa MacAlpine (Public Health), Ben Cleveland (Town of Digby), Dawn Thomas (Senior Safety), Lisanne Turner (SHYFT), David Tudor (Long and Brier Islands)
Notes
-the Tri-County Housing Board does not have a Town of Digby representative
-Dawn recently encountered 3 people needing housing. One is a youth, bouncing around.
-Ben mentioned a possible barrier: some people are unable to afford to maintain building codes as they change.
-The demolition of the Marla will leave many people looking for homes
-imagining affordable and sustainable housing for Digby:
-who owns it? (private? Town & Municipal? community organization?)
-possible future assisted living facility on the old Tideview Terrace site
-single women on income assistance are accessing Juniper House as they have nowhere else to go
-there is a need for a helping tree type of resource listing housing services (formal and informal)
-discussed multi-level income housing (ie. co-op housing)
-involvement of churches?
-need for community consultations?
-Islands (David):
-many people living with relatives, etc.
-the Islands Manor houses people of all ages, not just seniors
-there are empty houses (seasonal rentals) that aren’t filled in the winter
-there is a need for assisted living
-discussed “tiny homes” concept – small house movement: architectural and social movement that advocates living simply in small homes
-discussed communal housing for single women (feminist housing)
Strategic Planning:
First item was to identify priorities:
-studies have been compiled for Annapolis and Digby so it is important to look at what has been done
-affordable housing is desperately needed when family units break down, abusive situations, at risk youth, low income seniors, at risk individuals, single women, those with limited resources, Conway Workshop senior residents
A study would look at the need for Digby:
-how many units?
-structure of the facilities
A space that might be utilized is the former Tideview Terrace property
-Ben is meeting with the Tideview Board and will discuss the possibilities of using a space
-important to take advantage of what is already in the area
-Islands have large homes that could be purchased
-community must take ownership
When looking for funding, one must be prepared to look at other departments for funding, e.g.: mental health, addictions, etc.
Is there an entity in the community that could take on this suggestion of affordable housing as a project?
David will look into creating a Facebook group to share information.
Next meeting: July 11, 2013, 9:30am Schools Plus room, DRHS