Ottawa, Ontario, First Nations argue over seniors’ home financing

A jurisdictional battle between Ottawa and Ontario over funding for a new retirement home in a northern First Nation could see dozens of residential school survivors separated from their families and communities for a second time, the First Nation’s chief says.

The facility’s long-term care license on the Wiikwemkoong Unceded Territory on Manitoulin Island, about 550 km northwest of Toronto, expires next year.

The care home was built in 1972 and has reached the end of its life. Chief Tim Ominika said the building was too small to meet demand for space, had no room for cultural events and needed expensive repairs.

Ominika said if the First Nation cannot secure funding for a planned new building, it will have to relocate 50 Anishinaabe elders, most of whom are residential school survivors, to other care homes scattered across the province.

Rachel Manitowabi, the community’s former chief, said some seniors have Alzheimer’s or dementia and have difficulty speaking English.

“It’s going to re-traumatize,” Ominika told CBC News. “Not only for the residents of the long-term care facility, but also for the community as a whole.”

Wiikwemkoong is $20 million short of the $60 million he needs to build a new nursing home.

Ontario allocated $30 million to the project. The Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation contributed $7.5 million and the community raised more than $2 million through fundraising efforts.

Hajdu says there’s a ‘pattern of discrimination’ in Ontario

While long-term care is the province’s responsibility, Ominika said the federal government should cover the remaining $20 million because Ottawa funds similar projects in other communities outside its jurisdiction.

The federal government recently announced $1.2 billion for a new hospital in Moosonee, Ontario.$30 million for a new senior care home in Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory and $194 million for a 24-bed seniors long-term care facility in Rankin Inlet, Nunavut.

Indigenous Services Minister Patty Hajdu said the Ontario government should contribute more to the project.

“What we see over and over again in Ontario is a pattern of discrimination for First Nations,” Hajdu said.

“(Ontario) has a jurisdictional role and responsibility to support aging. We’re there as a partner, but we need the Ontario government to step up.”

Ontario defends its commitment. The provincial government said it has allocated 30 years of operating financing, construction financing subsidies and development financing for the new facility.

“We are disappointed in the federal government’s lack of involvement in this project, which has unnecessarily delayed construction,” said Daniel Strauss, a spokesman for state Long-Term Care Minister Natalia Kusendova-Bashta.

Ottawa also faces pressure from the federal NDP to cover the remaining money.

Algoma-Manitoulin-Kapuskasing NDP MP Carol Hughes and NDP Nunavut MP Lori Idlout made the request to Hajdu in a letter sent last month.

“At this point, it is critical to ensure Wiikwemkoong Unceded First Nation receives the funding it needs to keep its elders in their communities and not be displaced again,” Hughes said.

Ominika said he met briefly with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and met with other senior government officials in Ottawa earlier this month. He said they offered to help him find other sources of financing.

“I was a little disappointed,” Ominika said. “This wasn’t something we asked for at the 11th hour. We’ve been asking for support for several years.”

The new building planned for the community will have 96 beds (37 more beds than the current home) and programming space for seniors to share their knowledge with youth.

The current facility is at capacity with a growing waiting list. Its license will expire on June 30, 2025.

Indigenous Services Canada said the province has agreed to extend the existing home’s licence, while the community seeks additional funding.

Ominika said he would only consider a license extension if the country provided the necessary funding to build a new facility. He said he estimates construction will take two years.

The new house is not an ordinary construction project for the community. Ominika said this represents a down payment on preserving Wiikwemkoong culture for future generations.

“If we don’t secure this money by the government, we will lose it all,” he said.