The organiser of a housing crisis meeting in the Shoalhaven said empty buildings in the Nowra CBD should be re-purposed to provide temporary short-term accommodation for those sleeping rough.
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Veronica Rawlinson, who is running for Shoalhaven City Council under the Shoalhaven Community First team, brought the crisis to a head at a town hall meeting on Friday July 9.
Ms Rawlinson was motivated to call the meeting after hearing "heartbreaking" stories of homelessness from community members.
"I've been looking at this issue over the last 18 months and I saw a lot of vulnerable older women, even my friends, renting on their own," she said.
"Especially through these colder months, we don't want our people bunked in sleeping bags at the showground or on park benches.
"We must find temporary buildings, even just for the winter months, until we can get some sort of more sustainable and longer term solutions in place."
Ms Rawlinson said there are buildings on Berry Street and near the School of Arts in Nowra, however they need improvements if they are to house people. She said she will continue to seek for vacant council buildings.
"There's one in Berry Street, the old electrical store that used to be opened up for homeless people in the winter, but I've been told there's an asbestos issue," she said.
Around 50 community members and leaders shared personal stories and discussed solutions for the Shoalhaven's housing crisis at Friday's meeting.
Shoalhaven Mayor Amanda Findley shared some of the options council has put into consideration including creating tiny homes and recycling buses as temporary accommodation.
However, she said some of these options have been met with "legislative barriers". Cr Findley said more government support is vital to support affordable housing.
"We've been telling the government for over a decade. The situation is really desperate yet there seems to be little help from the other levels of government, especially because they weren't present at the meeting," she said.
"Council has been trying to take every step that it possibly can to assist the community. But at the end of the day, what we really need is for the state and federal governments to acknowledge that there's a problem."
"And in acknowledging that there's a problem, investing more money into the social housing that we have here already."
The group passed a motion to call on all levels of government for more investment into affordable housing.
Nowra resident Tina Roy shared her experience with homelessness, noting that the Shoalhaven's rates of homelessness have increased by 37 per cent since 2011.
Tina works full time as a nurse and has young children. Before accessing community services, she lived in a cabin with her kids with her belongings in storage and was about to live in a tent.
"1 in 4 people in our area are facing eviction, are facing homelessness, because their houses are becoming Airbnbs," Tina said after sharing her story.
"Do not turn your back on us homeless people."
Services still inundated
CEO of Salt Ministries Peter Dover shared that the crisis is not improving in the region, with his homeless shelter receiving up to 25 calls per week.
"We get 25 calls per week on average asking for any sort of accommodation, that's for a shelter sleeping 7 in one room. We're one service, so what are the other services dealing with?" he said at the meeting.
"I am disgusted at how the entire system is failing. Everyone is entitled to accommodation, a bed, decent food and to feel safe and secure. It is a human right."
Mr Dover mentioned it takes up to a week to two months to find clients accommodation and that he is seeing an increase in women over 50 accessing their services.
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Grace Crivellaro
Court reporter for the Illawarra Mercury.
Court reporter for the Illawarra Mercury.
