Living in a hotel is not a vacation when you have no idea when or if you can return home.
This is the reality for the more than 80 residents of Kelownasa国际传媒檚 Hadgraft Wilson Place as theysa国际传媒檝e been put up in various hotels after an evacuation of their apartment building was ordered.
Building management Pathways Abilities Society, a non-profit organization, has helped residents with the costs of hotel rooms and food vouchers.
Hadgraft resident Natasha Chance is grateful for Pathways but said, sa国际传媒淚sa国际传媒檓 hoping that UBC and the mayor can help us find housing if this goes on longer than a month.sa国际传媒�
Tenants of Hadgraft have received email updates from Pathways, but other than at the meeting on March 31, where residents were told to pack up, they have not heard anything from city officials or the University of B.C.
Residents were informed during a meeting on Easter Sunday that they would have until 6 p.m. on April 2 to evacuate the building. Large cracks in the buildingsa国际传媒檚 structure are visible on both the inside and outside of the apartment. The damage was caused by ground shifting due to the construction of the UBC Okanagan downtown campus project.
Residents were informed on April 5 that it would be at least two more weeks before they might get back into the building.
sa国际传媒淚tsa国际传媒檚 scary,sa国际传媒� Chance said. sa国际传媒淚 have nowhere else to go and there are lots of other people in the same situation.sa国际传媒�
Chance and a number of the other residents had been experiencing homelessness before moving into Hadgraft.
Jayme Brandoline and her fiance had been living in a tent in someonesa国际传媒檚 backyard ahead of getting the keys to the low-income apartment. She explained that getting into Hadgraft was a step closer to planning the wedding as the couple wanted all their sa国际传媒渄ucks in a rowsa国际传媒� before walking down the aisle.
The tenant said some of her best friends are now her neighbours in the building and laughed when talking about one of the kids who always came to visit.
sa国际传媒淚t was a sense of people not turning their eye to you anymore,sa国际传媒� she commented.
The tenant added that she watched the neighbouring Kelowna Legion and CoLab building get evacuated at the end of last year and now to have her own apartment evacuated, it feels as though shesa国际传媒檚 being looked past once again due to the lack of communication and support from the city and the university.
sa国际传媒淚tsa国际传媒檚 so angering, to be honest. They represent themselves and theysa国际传媒檙e looking out for themselves,sa国际传媒� Brandoline said. When asked if she had anything she wanted to say to the city, the woman said that maybe instead of the councilsa国际传媒檚 expected 35 per cent pay increase they could help put new housing in place sa国际传媒渇or unfortunate people who have been pushed out of their homes.sa国际传媒�
One of the children living in the building explained that Hadgraft was the first time she had her own room. The child and her parent used to live with other family and did not have a place to call home for about two years.
sa国际传媒淚tsa国际传媒檚 sad. We had a community there,sa国际传媒� the girl said about Hadgraft, tearing up. sa国际传媒淭heresa国际传媒檚 a big community there and now wesa国际传媒檙e split up into three different hotels and all that. Itsa国际传媒檚 hard.sa国际传媒�
A couple of the children said itsa国际传媒檚 been tough to concentrate in school and living in a hotel isnsa国际传媒檛 fun, adding that the beds arensa国际传媒檛 very comfortable.
One of the children from Hadgraft is not currently attending school as the bus cansa国际传媒檛 pick him up at the hotel. sa国际传媒淣ext week we are still staying in the hotel, so I donsa国际传媒檛 know how to take him,sa国际传媒� said the boysa国际传媒檚 mother Arena, who does not have a vehicle.
Arena said she moved from out of the country to Kelowna and getting into the low-income building was going to help toward a fresh start as a single mom in a new country. She loves Kelowna and the community here. With the lack of affordability in Kelowna, Arena is hoping to get back into the low-income apartment to guarantee her family can continue life in Kelowna.
As an option for those with limited income, Hadgraft Wilson Place houses several individuals with diverse physical and mental abilities. Shelley Decoste is one of those people.
sa国际传媒淚sa国际传媒檓 thankful that my diversability allows me to utilize everyday things, but theresa国际传媒檚 a lot of individuals that need the extra support,sa国际传媒� Decoste said.
Janelle and Paul are a couple living in the building who both use wheelchairs. Despite being placed in wheelchair accessible hotel room, they are facing challenges navigating the space.
sa国际传媒淭he only thing that made this room accessible was the bar in the bathroom and the lower peephole in the front door,sa国际传媒� Janelle wrote to Black Press. sa国际传媒淏etween Paul and I, we have four chairs that need to be accessible at all times in our living space. Bottom line is, tight spaces are a no go for us.sa国际传媒�
The couplesa国际传媒檚 support team scrambled and found the couple an accessible room, but the kitchen isnsa国际传媒檛 accessible for them and the bathroom is too tight for the chairs.
The Petcoffsa国际传媒檚 find themselves in a similar situation. The 89-year-old mother requires a medical bed and other equipment that doesnsa国际传媒檛 fit in a standard hotel room.
The apartment building is also a pet-friendly building. Resident Roxsin Miller had tried to stay with family nearby, but with his cat not getting along with other pets in the household he went back to the hotel. Several other residents said their pets are showing clear signs of anxiety and it adds to the stress of being displaced.
Across the board, Hadgraft residents are frustrated, scared, and tired while awaiting any update.
Monique Saebels and Megan Beckmann hosted a meeting on April 7, with as many Hadgraft residents as were able to attend after getting the news of the extended evacuation. Collectively it was decided that these women would be the faces behind the plea for help.
sa国际传媒淢egan and I are representing the majority of the tenants at Hadgraft Wilson Place,sa国际传媒� Saebels read out from a written statement. sa国际传媒淲e want to thank Pathways and BC Housing for their support through these difficult times, and Fire Chief Dwight Seymour. We are reaching out to our community to ask you all to make your voice heard with UBC and the City of Kelowna.sa国际传媒�
Saebels and her 89-year-old mother live in the building. She noted that her momsa国际传媒檚 health is declining due to the stress of the situation.
Beckmann has been living in a hotel longer than most Hadgraft residents after a pipe burst in the building earlier in the year and pushed a number of the tenants into hotels. Expected that work was being done to repair her apartment, it was a hard pill to swallow to find out that she and her kids would be displaced even longer.
sa国际传媒淯BCO representatives could have vowed to help us at many points in the last months,sa国际传媒� Beckmann said. sa国际传媒淗ow about when the shifting and cracking started, or when the other buildings around us were condemned?sa国际传媒� They instead let our community sit for months and months while we watched the hole get deeper and deeper and the cracks get longer and wider.sa国际传媒�
Beckmann is a student at Okanagan College working toward an Applied Bachelor of Arts degree in Community Research and Evaluation. Her initial goal had been to complete the program and then transition to graduate students in social work at UBCO, something she is now rethinking over the universitysa国际传媒檚 handling of their downtown build.
sa国际传媒淚 do not believe they have a place within our community and within the education system teaching advocation for social justice if this is how they treat their community. My goals have now changed after living UBCOsa国际传媒檚 version of social justice,sa国际传媒� Beckmann read in a written statement.
Tenants at Hadgraft Wilson Place have a plea for the citizens of Kelowna.
sa国际传媒淎sk why this has happened. We are people that have been ripped out of our homes and out of our lives and someone needs to be accountable as to why this build could continue having already caused so much damage,sa国际传媒� Saebels read from her statement. sa国际传媒淧lease use your voices to not let this happen to anyone else.sa国际传媒�
UBC has voluntarily stopped excavation work at the site of the downtown campus build.
UBC Properties Trust states on its website it sa国际传媒渃ommits to maintaining the highest standards of ethical, moral, and legal business conduct. We ensure transparency through our Whistleblower Policy, offering a confidential channel to expose misconduct.sa国际传媒�
Black Press has reached out to UBC Properties Trust for comment.
In an email to Black Press, Tom Wilson with the City of Kelowna said staff have offered assistance to Pathways and BC Housing in terms of helping to find more long-term accommodations for Hadgraft tenants if needed.
