A 62 year old man who helped create social housing before becoming unemployable finds himself at risk of being homeless, having found no affordable housing for the 1is July.
“I never thought this would happen to me,” says Mario Lortie, 62, in the middle of his 4 1/2-room apartment, in the middle of a shuffle of boxes.
From next Monday, he will be living in the hotel. Not because he is going on vacation, but because he will no longer have a place to live. His furniture will be stored.
He is one of the households supported by the Office municipal d’habitation de Montréal (OMHM) for emergency temporary accommodation. In total, 26 were already housed on Friday and 616 had applied.
Without the support of the Verdun housing committee, which helped him even though he lives in the Saint-Michel district, he would be on the street, he emphasizes.
“I was even planning to go to Atmosphere to buy a tent for camping.”
He was told he could stay in the hotel for two months while he found accommodation. “But I’ve been looking for five, six months!”
For 28 years
Mr. Lortie had lived in his upper duplex for 28 years. He paid $535 per month.
Ironically, he worked as a social work technician and himself contributed to the creation of social housing for mental health in the early 2000s, he says.
Following a breakdown in 2008, he became unfit for work. He now benefits from social solidarity.
In October 2022, the duplex was bought by Jerujohn Ntolla and Laura Freedman, who wish to convert it into a single-family residence in order to live there, we can read in the latest decision of the Administrative Housing Tribunal.
Quickly, a notice of repossession of accommodation was sent to Mr. Lortie, which he contested.
In November 2023, the court ruled in favor of the owners, who can take back the accommodation from Monday.
Were they aware when they bought that their project would put a vulnerable person on the street?
“Our clients rely on the decisions that have been rendered,” replied Me Ali Sbai, from the law firm that represents them.
Unless a miracle happens…
Mr. Lortie’s case is just one example among many, observes Véronique Laflamme of the Popular Action Front for Urban Redevelopment (FRAPRU).
“Short of a miracle, there is no other option than social housing,” she summarizes.
With his monthly income of $1,700, Mr. Lortie cannot afford to pay more than $900 per month if he wants to continue to feed himself and pay for transportation to his medical appointments.
He has also been on the waiting list for low-rent housing since 2022.
However, the average waiting time is five years, estimates M.me Laflamme: There are in fact more than 16,000 households waiting in Montreal.
Recently, several speakers have highlighted the links between the housing crisis and mental health and homelessness issues.
Mr. Lortie is being followed in psychiatry. Thanks to medication, his condition is stable. “But I feel quite lost. My future is uncertain.”
Are you still looking for accommodation for July 1st? Have you found it, but the accommodation is too expensive or too small?
Write to me at
