[LINK] "Iqaluit family in tent 1 of 170 on wait list for social housing in city"

[rfmcdonald]

John Van Dusen's CBC report reveals something shameful. That the housing shortages in Nunavut are this severe is terrible, especially since the population is so young and rapidly-growing.

The father of a family of six living in a tent in Iqaluit says despite working a full-time job, he cannot afford a place to live in Nunavut's capital.

Norman Roger Laisa and his family have spent the last three months living in a tent near downtown Iqaluit, heated by a propane tank.

"Barely slept last night just to make sure the tent is all up so my kids won't get cold," Laisa said Wednesday after temperatures dropped and the overnight windchill dipped below -30 C.

"Once in a while, I'll turn on the Coleman stove, even though we got a heater. But sometimes, it's not really warm. We got to put more blankets over our kids to keep them warm. But we managed to go through a night again."

Laisa and his family are on the Iqaluit Housing Authority's wait list for a three-bedroom unit.

The family is one of 170 households waiting for public housing in Iqaluit.