Jennifer McPhee
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Sep 12/01) - Susan Dyck, 77, has been on the waiting list for seniors' housing at Aven Court for two years.

Susan Dyck packs up her belongings. After two years on the waiting list, she's moving to Aven Court. - Jennifer McPhee/NNSL photo

She moved here in 1999 from Manitoba to be closer to her daughter and grandchildren. Her monthly pension is $1,100.

"My daughter and her husband run their business out of their house, so there was no way I could stay there," she explains.

Shortly after Dyck arrived in Yellowknife, she moved into subsidized housing at Northern United Place.

Last April, while alone in her apartment, she had her first blackout.

"I started feeling dizzy and then I passed out," she said. "It was terribly scary."

This week, Dyck finally moves into Aven Court, where she'll feel safe.

"We definitely need more seniors' housing," she said. "So that families can be together."

Seniors' groups and the NWT Housing Corporation agree that more housing options are needed for the elderly.

"Someone basically had to die before she (Dyck) could move in," said Peggy Wilkes, executive director of the Yellowknife Seniors Society.

"And that's sad."

Right now, there are waiting lists at all the seniors' homes in Yellowknife -- Mary Murphy, Aven Court and Aven Manor. Only Aven Manor provides long-term, 24-hour care.

According to the NWT Housing Corporation, there are 547 public housing units for seniors in the North Slave area.

Thirty percent of these seniors are living in inadequate, unsuitable or unaffordable conditions.

According to a recent GNWT review of seniors' programs, about 70 per cent of NWT seniors live on a fixed income derived from pensions and social assistance.

The review also found that the number of NWT seniors (age 60 and older) is expected to increase from about 2,750 to 7,000 in the next 20 years.

"There's going to be a greater need, the math speaks for itself," said Lynn White, acting director of the Yellowknife Association of Concerned Citizens for Seniors (YACCS). "We, as one organization, are trying to be part of the solution."

The federal program which paid for the construction of Aven Court in 1992 no longer exists.

However YACCS has secured $1 million from the NWT Housing Corporation for fiscal year 2003-2004.

But this money is designated for planning and construction only. YACCS will still have to scramble to find operating and maintenance funds.

And in the meantime, in a city where housing is scarce for everyone, waiting lists for seniors continue to grow.

As it stands

- There are 547 public housing units for seniors in the North Slave area.

- Thirty percent of these seniors are living in inadequate, unsuitable or unaffordable conditions.

- The number of NWT seniors (age 60 and older) is expected to increase from about 2,750 to 7,000 in the next 20 years.