Community Advocate Encouraged by Citizens’ Response to Housing Crisis

By Deron Hamel

When she looks around Brantford, Birgitta P.M. says she sees a growing number of people who are affected by the housing crisis. But she also sees many concerned citizens who are ready and willing to do something to help.

And this is encouraging, Birgitta says.

“I see people waking up to and becoming aware of the homelessness crisis and who are beginning to care enough to look for and create viable possibilities and real options and opportunities,” says Birgitta, a Brantford resident and community advocate.

Among the people Birgitta says she sees offering viable solutions is the Tiny Homes Working Circle that Belonging Brant has been facilitating since April 2022.

“Everyone deserves to have a safe landing spot they can call home to live their private lives within a thriving, supporting community infrastructure.”

The working circle is a community-driven response to address Brantford’s housing crisis. The group’s goal is to work with the city’s planning department to build two tiny homes as a pilot project and eventually build more accessory dwellings to address the housing crisis and create a stronger community where everyone can have a home.

Birgitta is among the Brantford citizens who have been participating in conversations to help create a tiny-home community in the city.

To date, the Tiny Homes Working Circle has moved closer to its goal of building two tiny homes — a one-bed dwelling and a two-bed dwelling — on a property owned by a Brantford nonprofit affordable home provider.

Ensuring everyone is housed should be a goal within every community for one simple reason, Birgitta says: A community where everyone is housed is much more likely to be a thriving community.

People in every community are all connected in one way or another, she notes.

And having a home is a starting point for people to build happy lives for themselves, and that happiness can be infectious.

“Everyone deserves to have a safe landing spot they can call home to live their private lives within a thriving, supporting community infrastructure,” Birgitta says.

Creating infrastructure that ensures everyone is housed is also crucial because we are collectively vulnerable, Birgitta says.

“I would love to see homes for those with low to no income be homes with decent quality living space where community members thrive, and not be just a shelter in place to sleep and eat.”

“We are all just one step — or misstep — away from an accident, injury, job loss, traumatic event, illness diagnosis that could render us homeless,” she says.

As the working group moves closer towards its goal of building the first two tiny homes, Birgitta says these dwellings should provide people more than just shelter.

“They should be as naturally bright and spacious as possible with access to a personal outdoor space for gardening, designed and built with universal design, especially in consideration of the fact that more than 20 per cent of Canadians live with a disability and the proportions increase to 40 per cent whereby seniors 65 and older live with disability and they should also allow for opportunities for ownership,” she says.

“I would love to see homes for those with low to no income be homes with decent quality living space where community members thrive, and not be just a shelter in place to sleep and eat.”

Asked what she thinks the best thing is that could happen to help make tiny homes work in Brantford, Birgitta says she would like to see more involvement from policymakers and others in positions of power step forward to help.

“In my dream world, the decision-makers and money-holders would open their hearts and wallets and share the wealth and put community first,” she says.

 

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If you are person with direct experience with precarious housing and/or homelessness, a builder, a property owner, or work for financial institution, a foundation, or non-profit you have something to offer. We’d love it if you take a few minutes to share your answers to these questions.

 

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