Transitioning into affordable housing: Perspectives of place and home from low-income seniors in Richmond, BC

Regeneration projects which re-house older people can potentially situate elderly residents in unstable, uncertain circumstances, which include residential eviction, loss of social support networks and access to health and wellbeing resources. Alongside this, the loss of the home as a place of safety and security can create psychological distress. Housing that is not only affordable but also supportive of the psychosocial needs of seniors is essential to the well-being of our ageing population, and this is particularly important in current times when Metro Vancouver is experiencing a significant increase in its older adult population during a period of rapidly rising market rents. This situation threatens housing adequacy for older citizens and places them at risk of isolation as well as social and societal disconnection and retrenchment from community life. Local and regional policy has advocated for affordable housing as a potential solution to provide stable, secure housing for those older people who are at risk of economic eviction. Yet, the provision of affordable housing in its built form often overlooks the notion of sense- of-place, defined as the social, psychological and emotional bonds that people have with their environment. A strong sense of place is articulated through access to supports for active participation, opportunities to build and sustain social networks, and assuming a meaningful role in the community. Using a community-based participatory research approach, this paper presents findings on how: (i) sense-of-place is experienced by older people relocating into an affordable housing development; (ii) lived experiences can inform the provision of effective formal and informal supports; and (iii) older people and other stakeholders can be located as active ‘place-makers’ in community planning and development. Project outputs will include tools and resources to assist the development of affordable housing developments that support the sense-of-place needs of residents at a local level.