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Residents of the building located at the center of the renovation debate in Port Coquitlam hailed themselves after successfully fighting an attempted mbad eviction of their new owner.
The May 24 decision of the Residential Tenancies Branch found that the owner of the building, 1995 Western Apartments Inc., could not prove "that they are not pursuing any other reason to end rentals "to Bonnie Brae apartments of 65 units.
Arbitrator R. Lanon also ordered the company to pay the $ 100 filing fee from each of about 40 appellants.
Renters' chief Gary Crane said the group was "relieved beyond comprehension".
"We have a lot of seniors and good tenants in the building and they were not expelled for just cause, they did not pay their rent late and they were not hecklers – they were expelled under the pretext that major renovations were to be made. "
4 months expulsion notice
By the end of February, approximately 100 tenants had received a four-month eviction notice stating that the renovations and repairs to the building were "so significant that the rental units had to be vacant" at the end of February. June.
But the tenants thought the company was trying to force them out of the country so they could increase rents beyond the 2.5 per cent per year allowed by the province.
"There is a flaw in the current regulations that if the landlord can dump the building, tenants can ask what they want when they come home," Crane said.
Mike Jarrett, who has lived in the building for 25 years, said that after the tenants got organized, the real intentions of the landlord became clear.
& # 39; Ready to go out of their way & # 39;
"The tenants were willing to work with the building owner – moving temporarily, even outside the building – during the renovations," said Jarrett.
"We were ready to go out of their way … and the owner absolutely refused to do it."
Jarrett pays just under $ 1,000 a month for her two-bedroom suite in Bonnie Brae. He estimates that his rent would have at least doubled had he been forced to find housing comparable to current market rates.
The owner / owner James Malinousky, owner and owner of Western Apartments Inc., in 1995, had not yet been recalled at the time of publication.
Crane says the family who owned and operated Bonnie Brae sold the building in the fall to new owners. The 1968 building and the 1.5-acre property stood at $ 13.5 million.
Victory for the little guy
The mayor of Port Coquitlam, Brad West, who rallied Bonnie Brae residents, called RTB's decision a victory for the little guy.
"The people we are talking about here are long-time residents of the community, and many are fixed-income seniors," said West. "We often hear stories like this that go in the other direction."
In March, Port Coquitlam City Council unanimously pbaded an amendment to the by-law making renovations more difficult in buildings with more than five rental units.
A month later, in 1995, Western Apartments Inc. filed a lawsuit against the city of Port Coquitlam in British Columbia. The Supreme Court stated that the amendment to the settlement was illegal and invalid.
Mayor West said the city would defend his position.
"We believe we have the capacity to act in this area … and to ensure that the residents of Port Coquitlam are protected," he said.
Jarrett and Crane both said they were happy to have the stress of the ordeal behind them.
"There are people who have been here for over 30 years," said Jarrett. "It's a slap to hear that you not only have to leave your long-standing home, but that you have to pay twice your rent, baduming you can even find housing."
"There is no place to go," Crane said. "Our option [if we lost] was where can we park our tents. "
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