City’s ‘mistake’ orders residents to evacuate their homes
Residents of 7535 and 7545 de l’Acadie were left in a state of confusion last week after a City inspector mistakenly gave an order to evacuate the residential building within 6 days due to unsafe living conditions.
“A City inspector communicated the wrong information to some tenants regarding an evacuation date. This information has since been corrected,” said Benoit Dorais, head of housing at the City of Montreal, to La Presse.
“If an evacuation was necessary, it would be planned according to the rules in place and an evacuation notice with a reasonable time would be sent to the tenants,” he added.
Neglected dwellings
The residential building is located on the busy de l’Acadie Boul. and is in a visible state of disrepair, with garbage strewn about the front entrance and seemingly little maintenance done on the building.
According to La Presse, the same building had previously appeared in articles on slum housing in Montreal in both 2006 and 2014.
Dorais said the City had found certain issues with the building and had since mandated an engineer’s report from the owner, which confirmed certain structural anomalies. Both the City and the owner, Abraham Leimzider, refused to say more on the issue.
Offers of financial compensation
Many residents have since been approached by building representatives encouraging them to vacate their homes. Many have also been offered payment and indemnities if they choose to give up their lease early.
Sujhwinder Singh, one such resident, accepted $2,000 to leave his apartment. “Pretty much everyone is leaving, how could I do otherwise?” he told La Presse. He has since signed a much more expensive lease close by, which he still does not know how he will pay for.
Others have instead decided to stay put, saying they do not want to leave the area, adding they could not find an apartment in the same price range.
“A City inspector communicated the wrong information to some tenants regarding an evacuation date. This information has since been corrected,”
Unstable foundation
In a letter written by lawyer Gabrielle O’Reilly Patry dated December 20, 2021, who represented the owner at the time, she stated the foundations of the building were not intact.
“According to the engineers’ report, it is recommended that the building be evacuated for the safety of the tenants,” she wrote, adding that it would be a good opportunity to subdivide the building to add more dwellings.
“We understand that these unfortunate circumstances can cause upheaval for you. Therefore, our client is ready to offer you a higher compensation than what is provided by law to leave your accommodation as soon as possible,” continued the letter.
The City later indicated it would work with the housing committee to ensure the owner respects his responsibilities towards his tenants and that their rights are respected.
“Gentrification by abandonment”
Housing advocacy organization Comité d’action de Parc-Extension has been active in the neighbourhood for many years helping tenants with housing issues and has followed the situation at 7535/7545 de l’Acadie closely.
Amy Darwish, coordinator at Comité d’action de Parc-Extension, told La Presse that the inaction of the owner amounts to “gentrification by abandonment.”
She added that work had to be done to ensure that vulnerable, low-income tenants were not hastily pushed out and forced to accept new leases that they could not afford.
“The landlord’s pressure on people to accept minimal sums in exchange for their lease termination is unacceptable,” she continued, explaining that letting the building progressively decay is a tactic to push people out.
This story was originally reported by La Presse.
