Sandy Bay Woman Loses Home After Attending School
Friday, August 13, 2004 at 16:08
A Sandy Bay woman thinks the Saskatchewan Housing Corporation is sending the wrong message to people wanting to get off welfare.
Bernice Dussion attended a post-secondary school in Creighton this past school year, but was forced to give up the rights to a house that she had been leasing in her home community of Sandy Bay.
The single mother of 3 children says she should have been at least allowed to sublet the house to someone else during her time in Creighton.
However, because she wasn’t allowed to do that, her house in Sandy Bay has been given to someone else.
Saskatchewan Housing Corporation spokesman Larry Chaykowski says the corporation will sometimes allow tenants to sublet their homes, but only if they’re away for less than six months.
He defends the policy, saying that it frees up units for people that might be more deserving of a home than the people chosen by the original tenants.
Chaykowski says anyone in Dussion’s situation can always re-apply for another house.
Dussion says given the housing shortage in northern communities, she could be waiting a long time.