By Steve Hubrecht
Residents living long term in Radium Hot Springs motels and hotels are expressing concern about their precarious housing situation and pushing back against stereotypes they feel are being unfairly thrust on them.
The Pioneer has published several news reports in recent months about efforts by the Village of Radium Hot Springs to amend its zoning bylaw to more clearly define short-term rentals (STRs), tourist accommodations, hotels and motels. Village officials have outlined that the new definitions are meant to make it easier for the village to ensure that different types of building codes are being followed where they ought to be, and are also meant to help address the growing trend of people living long term in hotels and motels in the village.
Long-term residents of Radium hotels and motels recently reached out to the Pioneer, wanting to tell their side of the issue.
Lisa Oram has been living in a Radium motel for nearly a year, and said she feels she and her neighbours have been cast in a negative light during discussions in the past few months. She outlined that most residents living in her motel hold full-time jobs, and sometimes hold more than one job. Although the motel owners are nice, living there “is obviously not an ideal choice. But most people don’t have much choice because of life circumstances,” she said.
Oram is single, recently divorced. She’s got a job working for Dara’s Dolphins Transportations Services Ltd, and also plenty of experience in business administration, but she is essentially starting life over and needs to be careful with her finances, particularly as she is trying to save up to buy her own vehicle.
Given Oram’s situation, she needs affordable housing. The problem is there isn’t any; not in Radium and not in other parts of the Columbia Valley. She pays $1,200 a month for a single room in the motel, with a hot plate and “a kind of an oven.” That may not sound like much, but in fact it’s a great deal, Oram told the Pioneer, considering that a typical one-bedroom apartment rental costs at least $1,800 a month.
Others in the motel pay a similar rate for single rooms, or $1,500 for suites. Many are, like Oram, in points of transition in life, trying to get back on their feet, or otherwise not able to afford the valley’s market rates for long-term rentals. They include other single women, recent divorcees, seniors and pensioners on disability, ski resort staff, golf course staff, single parents, and daycare workers.
Oram outlined that $1,200 to $1,500 a month is not exactly cheap. But “it gives us peace of mind and a place to be … we’re in the midst of a housing crisis. A safe place to be is a basic thing that everyone deserves.”
That’s why she is upset at the whispered rumours and ‘pigeonholing’ that she and other residents feel directed at them as long-term motel residents.
“I feel frustrated. I’m working. I’m trying to build a community and I feel like I’m being labelled because I live in a motel,” Oram said.
It’s also why she’s worried about the potential ramifications, even unintentional ones, of the village’s efforts to clarify accommodation definitions.
“I’m worried about maybe eventually not having a place to go. It’s very stressful. I’d like to stay in Radium if I can, but it’s hard,” she said. “A lot of people, we’re simply trying to make a life … (but) there’s absolutely no security … it’s not a great position to be in.”
She pointed out that the motel she lives in has 50 units and, in a few weeks, it will be at full capacity. Other motels will also be full, many with long-term renters. This shows there clearly is a big need within Radium for affordable housing, she said.
Oram is aware that the village plans to help create more housing, including more affordable housing ‘but it will take time,” she noted.
“It’s a great idea. It’s a nice plan. But that’s five years or 10 years away. We need something right now, not five years from now. Motels are filling that need right now.”
She said she really hopes village officials can cooperate with the motel owners who are effectively providing the housing the village so desperately lacks.
Oram’s sentiments were echoed to the Pioneer by another resident of the same motel.
“There is no affordable housing anywhere in Radium. There is no housing period anywhere in Radium,” said Christine Batchelor.
She moved to the valley from Alberta to be closer to family, but struggled to find a place to rent upon arriving.
Batchelor has scoured to find long-term rental rates below $1,800 to $2,000 a month for a one or two bedroom apartment but has come up empty.
“That ($1,800 to $2,000 a month) is not reasonable. It’s not affordable … the economy is not great. Inflation has gone up, but the rate of pay has stayed the same … something’s got to give,” she told the Pioneer.
In comparison, Batchelor’s son, until quite recently, rented an entire three-storey townhouse in Camrose, Alberta for $1,350 a month.
The precious few long-term rentals available at somewhat reasonable rates are only available from late fall through early spring, she said. Once the weather gets nice the owners rent them out as STRs instead.
Having to constantly move every six months is “not realistic” if you want to make a life here, said Batchelor.
She finds it ironic: the STR owners want to cater to tourists. This pushes out the long-term renters, many of whom work in the tourism industry.
“We’re the ones that cook for them (tourists), clean for them, serve them their drinks, and make sure they have a good time,” said Batchelor. “If we can’t live here, the visitor experience for tourists here will be a lot different . . . there’s a lot of jobs here. There’s just nowhere to live.”
Batchelor feels, like Oram, that village officials need to reach some sort of compromise with hotel and motel owners.
“The whole thing … it’s frustrating. It’s disheartening … it’s a no-win situation,” said Batchelor.
