Laval paraplegic still searching for accessible, affordable housing

Maryse Aubin is a paraplegic living in Laval, and finding a place to live has become a four-year odyssey through Quebec's housing crisis.

She currently shares a one-bedroom apartment with her son, entering through a garage door. It's cramped and inaccessible. She's looked across Laval, Montreal, and Longueuil — anywhere with a ground-floor unit that might work.

"In two days, I visited three places, three ground-floor units that could have worked for me," Aubin said. "As soon as they see the word 'wheelchair,' it's radio silence. Landlords just stop responding."

"I don't understand, it feels like we're always the landlords' last choice," she added.

Her small bathroom has taken a physical toll. Routine tasks like showering require repeated transfers that have injured her shoulders and biceps. In 2023, two tendons in her shoulder were completely torn — she had surgery, and more tears have since developed. A torn bicep tendon from those repeated transfers is her current injury.

Organizations focused on accessible housing say Aubin's experience is far from unique. Logement HAN, which has operated for more than 24 years, now manages more than 400 affordable and accessible housing units across the Eastern Townships, Gaspésie, and Bas-Saint-Laurent regions. Additional projects are planned for Montreal, though no timeline has been announced.

"We provide for people with low income that are independent and live with disability," said Anik Trudel, the organization's chief executive officer. "It can be a physical disability, intellectual disability or autism, but also seniors that need adaptation in their housing."

According to Quebec government data, about 24 per cent of women aged 15 and older were living with a disability in 2022, compared with 18 per cent of men. Yet accessible housing remains scarce. Trudel estimates that fewer than one per cent of social housing units are fully adapted to meet the needs of people with disabilities.

Logement HAN is changing its design approach. "We integrate 55 adaptations now and we're moving to a new design where we're going to integrate 80 adaptations," Trudel said. "There will be no stairs. You can come in and there's no bump. The windows are going to be lower so you can see outside. Accessible bathroom, accessible kitchen."

For Aubin, those innovations come too late to solve her immediate need. "I'm not asking for much," she said. "Just a ground-floor apartment where I can stay and live my life."