A single mom with three kids, a frail 74-year-old man and immigrant families who speak minimal English are among the folks who could soon be without a home.
On Jan. 28, FZK Investments of Richmond served notice to all tenants living in an apartment at 1320 Fifth Ave. that their tenancy would end in two months, saying the landlord had received all the necessary permits and approvals required by law to demolish or repair the rental unit. Tenant Len MacKave isn’t taking the “rent eviction notice” without a fight and has been to city hall to inquire about plans for the building.
“I determined that there are no permits in place, or even applications made for either demolition or renovation of the property,” he said. “On their eviction notice it states quite clearly that that is their reason for doing so, so they either haven’t done their homework or jumped the gun or something.”
MacKave believes he and the building’s other tenants are being unlawfully evicted and has filed an application for dispute resolution at the Residential Tenancy Branch.
“I am not against business or development. I work in construction and I’ve seen these renovations,” he said. “I feel, for a company to believe the rule of law doesn’t apply to them, as they intimidate, frighten and steamroll the rights of these people, is not only simply wrong but it’s despicable.”
With no permits in place at city hall, MacKave said the building’s new owner could at least give tenants more time to find new homes.
“They are very scared,” he said of other tenants. “’The man’ puts a notice on your door and says, ‘Move,’ and so you move and you don’t argue. I’ve been trying to explain we have rights in Canada.”
The apartment recently sold for $2 million, according to the NAI Commercial Real Estate Services’ website.
“This apartment building contains a unique suite mix of 12 two-bedrooms and a one-bedroom-and-den. Current rents are below market levels,” stated the website. “Vacancies rates continue to decline in New Westminster, and tenant profiles evolve towards younger professionals looking to rent instead of buying, generating the possibility to capitalize on the underachieving potential of the property.”
The Record could not reach a representative for FZK Investments before press time.
John Stark, the city’s senior social planner, said city staff spoke with the building’s representative and was told the building would be renovated.
The previous owner didn’t do much in the way of upgrades to the building, but MacKave said he’s stayed because of the low rents, good neighbours and walking distance to the uptown and downtown neighbourhoods. While he should be able to find a new place to live as he’s able-bodied and doesn’t have a pet, he said it will be harder for those with health issues and pets.
“I think I’ve been there at least 16 years. I am the longest-serving tenant, but there’s a couple of people who have been there close to a dozen years,” he said. “It’s not the Paris Hilton, let’s put it that way.”
After paying $100 to file for dispute resolution, the Residential Tenancy Branch set an April 5 date to hear MacKave’s application.
“They say they have the legal document and permits, and they don’t,” he said of the owner. “To me, it’s an open-and-shut case; it’s a slam dunk. But you never know.”
Andrew Sakamoto, executive director of the Tenants’ Resource and Advisory Centre, said not all landlords are aware they need to have permits in place before they issue notice for tenants to vacate. He said getting this type of notice can be troubling to tenants.
“It’s a very emotional experience,” he said. “It’s someone’s housing – it’s sort of everything to them. When your housing is affected, everything else is affected. We get a lot of calls from people who are very emotional. On top of that, there might be language barriers, mental-health issues that just compound the problem.”
