There were a lot of Skodas – though ‘a lot’ does not adequately describe the number of the odd, mono-coloured vehicles pouring down the highway.

A visit to Czechoslovakia in 1989 showed it to be a country lacking in automobile variety. Viewing the towns and cities through the window of a van reflected the same lack of distinction.

The glorious countryside was complemented by some older homes built in an earlier generation – if you could see past the monolithic, concrete boxes that housed the majority of the citizens of the day.

It was a rather unappealing housing arrangement when compared to the variety then available in the Western world.

Today, the majority of Edmontonians have every housing choice imaginable, from downtown high rises to suburban pockets of paradise, but a segment of the population exists with few alternatives – the poor.

Kenton Friesen, Business Edge
The A. MacDonald building on 105th Avenue was converted into low income housing.

Much socialist theory has been aimed at helping the poor, yet there is little evidence that many socialist countries have effectively addressed those issues.

That is not to say the capitalist world has presented the desired solutions, either.

Perhaps fragments of the answer are alive in our own city – a city whose spiking population is driving housing prices through the roof and dragging rents along with it. Affordable housing is not the main concern of the public service, and even further from the thoughts of most business people. But good-news stories exist – some of which will be covered in future columns.

Fragments of an affordable housing solution once existed in socialist Hungary, where citizens paid one dollar per month for rent.

Kenton Friesen, Business Edge
The 97th Street project was an undertaking of the Edmonton Housing Trust Fund, which helps provide low-end housing units.

Affordable? Yes. Efficient? No.

In a country where all land is valued equally, allocation issues are frustrated. The best land for a particular use is often not the land available.

In a discussion on Eastern Europe’s housing crisis during the latter stages of the socialist economies, world-recognized real estate authority Austin J. Jaffe, of Pennsylvania State University described state housing bureaus with poor production that could not conceivably meet the demand, offered few choices and still failed to produce equitable outcomes.

Cuba’s track record may be only slightly better.

A report by Teddy Kapur and Alistair Smith, published in May of last year, outlines the housing situation in that country.

Since Castro seized power in the 1959 revolution, Cuba’s housing policies have been governed by three guiding principles – housing is a right (not a commodity), housing should be equitable and the government is the primary decision- maker.

Multiple ownership was eliminated in 1960, making the state the primary housing provider.

Today, about 85 per cent of the households in Cuba own their own home, but they are not allowed to buy or sell property because Castro is said to believe it violates socialist principles.

Naturally, the black market in housing is alive and well. Due to the collapse of Cuba’s major trading partners – the Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc – the country has been forced to turn to tourism to make up for lost revenue. A spinoff is the permission granted to homeowners to rent out up to two rooms in their house either to tourists or locals.

Without the generation of wealth through real estate in Canada, and its steady stream of income, our society would lack much of its diversity and philanthropic prowess.

Heaven knows we can’t rely on the stock market millionaires to support our needed charities when the chips are down.

Yet alongside the North American dream lies the sober thought that the poor are always with us – and they need a place to lay their heads at night as well.

Is decent and affordable housing a basic human right? Barbados attorney Stephen Lashley thinks so.

Speaking at the Barbados Conference on Affordable Housing last November, Lashley challenged the organizations in his country: “Credit unions, community groups and associations need to be brought more to the centre stage in tackling the issues surrounding affordable housing. With the correct blend of incentives there is a lot of creativity that could be generated.

“The creation of low-income housing tax credits, home loan programs and community investment programs are but a few areas for greater focus. Financial institutions could also be further encouraged by an appropriate program to underwrite creative efforts and increase their participation in, and support for, efforts directed towards increasing the supply of affordable housing.”

In Edmonton, there are a variety of local task forces working on low-income housing concerns and numerous creative programs in progress or in the works.

And it’s a good thing, as every indication points toward an increase in housing affordability issues as the city comes of age. Economic prosperity doesn’t always trickle down to people who sleep under bridges.

Many religious and charitable organizations are now addressing housing issues at the grassroots level, working to provide the bare necessities to those in need – regardless of tenant-landlord legislation, corporate involvement, mortgage stipulations and government incentives.

Their work needs to be recognized.