New transitional housing projects address need for safe, affordable spaces
by Kaitlin Vitt
With increasing living costs, advocates say there is a desperate need for affordable housing in Winnipeg.
Two new transitional housing projects for people facing gender-based violence have recently received funding through major capital grants from The Winnipeg Foundation. The projects, led by the University of Winnipeg Community Renewal Corporation (UWCRC) and the West Central Women’s Resource Centre (WCWRC), are filling critical gaps in the city’s need for affordable housing.
“It’s hard to find a good, safe place to live with a limited income,” says Carey Richards, Interim Executive Director of WCWRC. “Often, places that are affordable are maybe in areas people don’t feel safe and with subpar living conditions, such as pest control struggles or landlords who don’t maintain the homes.”
Providing safe spaces
During the past couple of years, WCWRC has been renovating an apartment building to be used as transitional housing, a project supported by many organizations, including The Winnipeg Foundation. The 16-suite building is made up of one, two, and three-bedroom units for mothers and gender-diverse people, and their children, who have experienced gender-based violence and homelessness. The units are rent-geared-to-income (RGI), meaning a tenant is charged 30 per cent of their household’s income for a unit.
The first tenants moved into the building in April 2024, and units were filled by August.
The units are fully furnished, something Richards highlights as important; many people exiting violent situations often leave with nothing more than what is on their back. “Parents and their young kids don’t need to start from scratch when they move in; they have all the basic home necessities met,” Richards says. “Tenants are feeling like they’re able to breathe little bit.”
The building also offers a play space for children attached to the laundry room, a rooftop patio with community gardens, and wraparound supports, such as access to gender-based violence caseworkers.
“We’re hoping this supportive environment fosters a sense of community and belonging for the folks who are here, so they can feel empowered to step forward in their lives,” Richards says. “We’re excited to be able to do this work and are really grateful for all of the funders that have helped make this a reality.”
The need for safe, affordable housing in Winnipeg is prevalent, Richards says, evidenced by WCWRC filling the transitional housing suites so quickly. There’s a waitlist for future tenants, and Richards says referring partners reach out multiple times a week to check in on availability.
Community collaboration
Multiple community organizations have come together to work on a second-stage transitional housing project for Indigenous and newcomer women and children who have experienced gender-based violence. Led by the UWCRC, operating partners include New Journey Housing, Ikwe Widdjiitiwin, and Family Dynamics. With support from The Winnipeg Foundation, the 15-unit building in downtown Winnipeg is currently being developed.
“All the organizations working together are supporting the same community,” says Kim Fontaine, Executive Director of Ikwe Widdjiitiwin. “We’re doing it from different spaces, and maybe our mandates are a bit different, but a lot of the communities we’re working with could very easily be tied to any of the organizations.”
Bringing together organizations with varying specialities makes it easier for people to access the services they need, Fontaine adds. “People otherwise would be forced to go door to door, but when you create a partnership, you’re bringing services to them, and you’re reducing the amount of running around they will have to do,” Fontaine says. “You’re meeting people where they are at.”
Ikwe Widdjiitiwin, an Indigenous-led organization, serves as a place of safety for people impacted by gender-based violence. While people stay with them, they offer counselling, advocacy work, cultural programming, and a full-time school for children.
One program Ikwe Widdjiitiwin offers is Red Road to Healing, something Fontaine believes would be a valuable addition to the UWCRC project. Red Road to Healing is a family violence support program done through cultural and ceremonial teachings and led by a Knowledge Keeper.
“It’s a great space to bring together a mix of folks,” Fontaine says. “When bringing together newcomer and Indigenous participants, like through this transitional housing project, there’s going to need to be a cross-cultural training piece as well.”
Fontaine says Ikwe Widdjiitiwin will also make its housing support workers available to assist and support tenants with accessing various services, such as medical legal advocacy, promoting cultural ceremonies, supporting folks with protection orders, and helping with affordable housing referral services for when they’re ready to transition out.
These additional support services are important offerings in addition to affordable housing, she says.
“For people who are escaping gender-based violence, it’s just one layer of what’s going on,” Fontaine says. “There needs to be a framework where we’re providing these wraparound support services to individuals after we’ve housed them, to help ensure they continue to stay safe and successful.”
As Winnipeg faces an ongoing housing crisis, these collaborative projects offer a vital lifeline for those escaping violence.
“Housing plays a role in saving lives and helping people flourish to live in a safe, good way, which is what any human being is entitled to,” Fontaine says.
The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) considers housing affordable if it costs less than 30 per cent of a household’s before-tax income.
In 2016, about 22 per cent of Winnipeg households spent above the affordable housing rate, according to a report done through the University of Winnipeg’s Institute of Urban Studies.
These numbers are even higher for Indigenous people and newcomers in Winnipeg – 26 per cent of Indigenous people and 36 per cent of newcomers spent more than 30 per cent of their income on housing.
Employment and Income Assistance Program (EIA) rates in Manitoba are $887 per month for one adult, an amount intended to cover all basic necessities including shelter and food. Recent reports place the average rent for a two-bedroom apartment in Winnipeg in 2024 at around $1,800.