15 units added to Cambridge Bay’s public housing supply

Fifteen housing units are being transferred from the Government of Nunavut’s staff housing portfolio to the Cambridge Bay Housing Association to address the lengthy waiting list for public housing there.

The move was made to “address a critical shortage of public housing in Cambridge Bay,” Derek Elias, chairperson for the Cambridge Bay organization said in a news release.

Like many communities across Nunavut, the shortage of housing has hit the community hard. There are currently 300 people, including 167 families, on public housing wait lists according to the release by the Cambridge Bay association.

In an interview, Cambridge Bay Housing Association manager Vicki Aitaok said “some people have been on the waiting list for 10-plus years.”

Under the transfer, some GN staff members will move to 15 units of new housing stock by July 1. Cambridge Bay Housing Association staff will assist tenants with their relocation to make it a smooth process, according to the news release.

In the release, Elias said “many of our elders and clients with medical issues require one-level units with no interior stairs, and the addition of these 15 units will allow us to transfer them to an appropriate unit.”