Affordable accessible housing in short supply, mother says

The Dartmouth mother of anine-year-old girl with severe disabilities says finding an affordable and fully accessible rental unit in the Halifax area is like searching for a needle in a haystack.

Willow Ross uses a bulky wheelchair. It took her family six months to find the home they currently occupy, but even it is far from ideal.

• Listen to the story from CBC's Information Morning

The door frames of the bedroom, bathroom and living room are battered from trying to push the wide wheelchair through. And Willows mother, Hailey, has to take the girl out of the wheelchair and lower it down the front step in order to get it outside.

We need a place to get around and finding that is like finding a needle in a haystack, Hailey Ross told CBCs Information Morning. Theres nothing. So its a struggle. Its one of the worst struggles Ive had to deal with.

The kitchen, where the family eats, is too small for Willows wheelchair, which means the girl has to wait in the living room or bedroom during suppertime.

The house is not structurally strong enough to support a wheelchair lift for the stairs.And the living room is not large enough to accommodate the family and Willow at once.

Its nice to have her in the living room with us when were sitting down watching TV or sitting down playing or doing arts and crafts, Hailey Ross said. Its nice to have her there, but we cant. Theres no space.