Tenant says Salvation Army, Durham Region left him scrambling for affordable housing after program ended
CBC
A former tenant of The Salvation Army’s rental housing program in Durham Region says he’s looking for accountability after the program ended last year, leaving him scrambling to avoid living on the streets.
Jamie Middleton said he has received no meaningful support from The Salvation Army or Durham Region — which funded the program — since it ended in November.
“Nobody’s taking any accountability for anything, and I find that disgusting and distasteful,” he said.
The program began in partnership with the region in 2017. The Salvation Army signed time-limited guarantee agreements with landlords for rent payments on behalf of the tenants.
Middleton said he joined the program in March 2023 and signed a four-year contract, living with roommates in a Pickering house.
The Salvation Army has said Durham Region withdrew funding for the program in May. When the program ended in November, it had been supporting 88 adults and 114 children.
Middleton said tenants should have been told in May the program was ending. Instead, he said the charity told him in September.
“That gave us no time to figure things out, save money,” he said.
The Salvation Army declined to be interviewed for this story.
In a statement, spokesperson Gina Haggett said the charity “made significant efforts” to advocate for their clients and persuade the region to reverse its decision.
“Once it was apparent the program could not be saved, all clients were provided with notice in accordance with our program agreement of not less than 60 days,” the email read.
But Middleton said that notice wasn’t enough.
“Why did you withhold information from your clients … and put them in a situation where they could be homeless?” he said.
Since the program ended, Durham Region has partnered with nonprofit agency Dedicated Advocacy Resource Support (DARS) to help affected tenants, said Sahar Foroutani, the region’s manager of income, employment and homelessness support.
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