A property management company is calling on the GNWT to provide more support for getting people into public housing. Meanwhile, a non-profit is criticizing that company for not doing more to support public housing.
Northview, a prominent property-management company in the NWT, gave a presentation to the GNWT's standing committee on social development in early March, which consists of six regular MLAs. In its presentation, Northview said private landlords are not social service providers. Housing is a fundamental right, but that comes down to social housing, not market housing, reads the company's presentation.
"Government and social agencies must provide necessary support services," the landlord stated.
According to Northview, it leases 15 per cent of units to public housing, Housing First (a program run by the Yellowknife's Women's Society), YWCA and other support organizations. Of the 1,288 units Northview has, nearly two per cent of units are considered "unrentable," due to "social issues," according to the company.
In January alone, Northview said it had to:
-ask 2,961 non-tenants to vacate common areas
-make 258 calls for service
-report 24 serious incidents
-confiscate two weapons
-stop three fights
-make nine security arrests
In 2024, 10 buildings, including Carlton Place, Lanky Court Apartments and Sunridge Place, amounted to more than $500,000 in security costs, according to Northview. It also presented images of violent assaults taking place within its units, including a man strangling a woman, people kicking others on the ground and a woman carrying a machete.
The company argues there needs to be changes to the existing NWT Residential Tenancies Act, like adding emergency filings, streamlining eviction enforcement and better defining a rental officer's discretion on costs for damages.
In response to that presentation, executive director for Yellowknife Women’s Society (YKWS) Renee Sanderson provided her own statement to the standing committee. In it, she said she approached Northview in 2023 with a proposal for a dedicated building for Housing First. Years later, little to no progress has been made on that front.
Sanderson said she reached out to Northview regional director Colleen Wellborn to talk about this project in February 2024.
"She informed me that she had identified the Simpson House as a possible option but needed to consult her leadership before moving forward. She assured me she would provide an update within a week. I followed up on March 4, 2024, and she again promised an update in another week. However, no further communication was received," Sanderson's statement reads.
She also said she received an email from Northview last July raising concerns about the women's society's Housing First residents.
With this timeline repeatedly getting pushed back, Sanderson contends that a collaborative approach between YKWS and Northview could have prevented many issues from escalating. Also, she condemned Northview for having what she calls a blacklist against tenants.
"In May 2024, I received an email from Ms. Wellborn stating that three individuals had been evicted from Northview units and would no longer be allowed on any Northview properties. She further noted that if these individuals were part of the Housing First program, they would not be permitted in any Northview-owned housing," Sanderson stated. "While Northview has publicly stated that no blacklist exists, this email directly contradicts that claim and raises serious concerns about how individuals are being treated."
Yellowknife MLAs weigh in
Two Yellowknife MLAs among the standing committee members have shared their thoughts on this situation.
Range Lake MLA Kieron Testart, who happens to be Wellborn's husband, said Northview tenants are seeing what he described as a perfect storm of poverty, addictions and a lack of housing options.
Testart agreed with Northview's point that the NWT Residential Tenancies Act needs updating. He said that when people hear about evictions, they usually assume it's the fault of a greedy landlord going after the poor. Instead, he focused his attention specifically on drug dealers when speaking about evictions.
"You're talking about drug dealers who have taken over public housing and are preying on the public housing clients, or preying on the elderly or people who are easily captured by these thugs who can use intimidation or influence," he said. "And you can't get them out because the process is too slow or there are loopholes that these people exploit, these predators exploit."
Testart noted there was a shock in the room when first seeing Northview's presentation, in particular when it came to seeing some of the images the company included. It's a sentiment Yellowknife North MLA Shauna Morgan seconded.
Morgan also asserted that the NWT Residential Tenancies Act is in need of review.
"There are a lot of different, important social issues that need to be publicly debated, both from a landlord side and from a tenant side in terms of rights and responsibilities and how we can make sure that rental housing is safe for everyone," she said.
She also encouraged others to look at the bigger picture of how these situations unfold.
"When we're talking about people who are coming out of homelessness and into these units, what are their stories?" she asked rhetorically. "What challenges are facing those nonprofit agencies that are trying to support them? So I think there is a much bigger story that needs to be told."
Testart said he disclosed he was married to Wellborn to the committee in public before Northview's hearing and the integrity commissioner cleared him to participate in the hearing.
