Here in the old West End, however, I don�t mind. The sound of work is music to my ears. Maybe it�s professionals doing a renovation. Maybe it�s a landlord fixing his rental units. Maybe it�s a homeowner just trying to keep his house from falling down.
Maybe they won�t do it perfect. Maybe they can�t even afford to do it right. But at least they�re working to make it better.
For years people seemed optimistic that if we hired enough social workers we could fix much of what�s wrong with the inner city. New workers, innovative programs and brand new offices were parachuted into our neighbourhoods. Years and untold millions of dollars later, we learned that social workers have a role, but they�re not the answer to all the city�s ills.
Hundred year old houses, especially when run by absentee landlords, need more than social workers. You can�t social work your way out of galvanized plumbing, faulty wiring, leaky roofs, and crumbling foundations.
As the heart of our city started crumbling, struggling homeowners and renters told politicians it was time to �put up or shut up.�
And, to their credit, they�ve been working at it. Each level of government has contributed funds and key administrative people to ensure that the work of rebuilding our city gets priority.
For years, our Lazarus Housing ministry has joined other groups working with the Winnipeg Housing and Homelessness Initiative. We�re renovating derelict and boarded homes for homeownership. We transformed condemned apartment blocks into clean and safe housing.
But to be honest, I sometimes get overwhelmed when I see how much more work there is to be done.
The other day I wanted to show some friends all the houses we�ve renovated and sold. I wanted to show off the apartments we�ve fixed up. I wanted to get to the stuff I�m proud of, but to get there we had to go past the stuff that still discourages me.
I used to dream that if I won a ten million dollar lottery I�d buy all the crack houses and slum tenements in the neighbourhood. I�d renovate them, and get them to the good folks in our neighbourhood. But I know there�s more to it than that.
This week, all three levels of government announced something called an �Affordable Housing Initiative.� Millions of dollars pumped into the revitalization and expansion of Manitoba�s affordable housing market. I attended and applauded the announcement.
Media scrambled for a new angle on an old, not-so-sexy story. They spit out stats. They highlighted the number of housing units fixed or �helped.� They stressed that millions of taxpayer dollars would do more work, employ more people, provide more shelter.
It�s easy to sound optimistic when you first announce an initiative. There�s lots of excitement, lots of potential. But I�ll tell you how to measure the success of these multi-million dollar initiatives.
Walk down the same streets at the end of the five years. Then ask yourself, �Do things look or feel any different?
And I have an even more personal measure of success.
In five years, will I have to say �no� less often?
I get lots of phone calls every week from people desperate for a clean, affordable place to rent or buy.
Sometimes it�s not hard to say �no!�
I got some calls from people sounding pretty plastered. No thanks! Another got kicked out of his apartment for trashing the place and wondered if I had an apartment for him. I told him to hold on while I rummaged for the number of a local slum landlord.
But usually it�s really hard to say �No.�
One family moved into town because one of their kids has cancer. They needed a place quickly. Then I was visited by a mom and young daughter stuck in a building with druggies and hookers, but unable to afford a move. It�s pretty rotten when you�re too scared to stay, but too poor to leave. It hurts to tell these folks I have nothing for them.
Don�t get me wrong! Much good has been accomplished. Many homes � and people � have been helped.
But tonight I�m feeling we have �miles and miles to go before we sleep.�
Rev. Harry Lehotsky
514 Maryland Street
Winnipeg, Mb R3G 1M5
(204) 775-4929
[email protected]