Šiauliai to build two blocks as social housing purchases stall

Šiauliai will build two apartment blocks to provide social housing after the municipality bought only one such apartment in two years, LRT reported. The projects reflect growing demand and stalled purchases, while other municipalities are moving away from building blocks dedicated to social housing.

The two buildings are expected to be completed within two years. One is planned for Verdulių Street, near the city centre, and the other for Žemaitės Street, farther away. One block will include 29 one-room apartments. The other will house people on the social housing waiting list who belong to specific groups, including people with disabilities and large families.

The project is estimated to cost 7 million euros, with construction costs of about 4,000 euros per square metre. The city says purchases have been hindered by a requirement that apartments meet at least energy performance class D, which did not apply in the previous funding period.

A total of 41 apartments will be built, while more than 500 people are waiting for social housing. The waiting list has grown by nearly 60% in four years. Those waiting include 34 large families, 50 orphans or people who have been left without parental care, 142 people with disabilities and 60 young families, according to city officials.

In Pakruojis, a town where an apartment block for social housing was built about a dozen years ago, the district mayor says integration into the community has been slower and conflicts have required intervention from municipal and social services.

About 80 families are waiting for social housing in Pakruojis. The district has temporary accommodation with 15 places, nine of which are occupied; six of those residents are waiting for social housing. Families with children also stay at the crisis centre while waiting for housing.

Waiting times are longest in the largest cities. In Šiauliai, people may wait as long as 10 years.