Federal minister refuses to sign off on housing project for Attawapiskat

Create: 12/01/2015 - 19:27

Leaders in Attawapiskat First Nation are disappointed that Aboriginal Affairs Minister John Duncan would not sign off on a project to build 30 houses in the community.
On Aug. 2, the community received a letter from the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corp. (CMHC) saying it could not finance the proposed housing project to build 30 duplexes because Duncan refused to sign off on the agreement.
Attawapiskat had applied to CMHC’s non-profit, on-reserve housing program which provides loans to First Nations to construct or rehabilitate rental units. However, the loan must be guaranteed by the minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development of Canada (AANDC).
“I’m very disappointed because (Duncan) is already aware of our community with our housing crisis,” Attawapiskat Chief Theresa Spence said, adding that the government did not consult with the community before making the decision.
Last winter, the community gained national media attention when it declared a housing crisis because some families were expected to endure the winter in tent frame shelters. Though the federal government responded with $3 million in aid and to construct and ship 22 portable units to the community, housing is still a major concern for community members.
“Those 30 units could have helped people have better housing and eliminate overcrowding,” Spence said.
The CMHC letter came on the heels of a ruling by a federal judge on Aug. 1 that the Harper government’s decision to appoint a third party manager in wake of the housing crisis was “unreasonable in all circumstances.”
Spence said the federal government was likely waiting for the outcome of the ruling before it would decide whether to sign off on the housing project.
“They’re enraged with us, I guess,” Spence said. “And it shows that they’re not willing to work with us to improve the crisis in our community.”
In an open letter to Duncan, MP Charlie Angus (NDP – Timmins-James Bay) and MP Jean Crowder (NDP – Nanaimo-Cowichan) said they are “disturbed” by the federal government’s decision not to support the housing project following the court ruling.
“It would be disturbing to think that this refusal to sign off on a credible funding arrangement for new housing may have been part of the ongoing punishment of the community for having spoken up about the dire housing conditions last November,” Angus and Crowder wrote.
“Such a move would only further underline the sense of broken trust between your department and northern First Nations.”
The MP’s suggested “concrete steps” to mend the relationship between the government and the First Nation, including a reimbursement of the costs of the third party manager, whose four months of fees were billed out of the community’s annual budget.
A call to AANDC was not returned as of press time.

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