“How many people in the room are directly affected by renovictions right now?”
Twelve people put their hands up.
“And how many people are worried that they’re going to be renovicted soon?”
Another eight or so put up their hands.
An alarming trend
About 35 people packed into a small room at Century House Tuesday night to discuss what they say is an alarming trend in New Westminster – renovictions.
Tuesday’s meeting was hosted by MLA Judy Darcy in response to an overwhelming number of inquiries from residents in New Westminster concerned about renovictions.
City social planner Claudia Freire and a representative from the Tenant Resource and Advisory Centre were also there to speak about tenants’ rights and resources available.
Renovictions happen when landlords evict tenants “under the guise of performing major renovations and then increase the rent on the unit or units,” according to the Pivot Legal Society.
The majority of people at the meeting who had already received an eviction notice or were worried one was on its way live at 322 Seventh St. in Brow of the Hill. The three-storey building was purchased by the M1 Group in April, and at the end of May, residents on the third floor received a two-month eviction notice.
Residents left wondering
Third-floor resident Vanessa Giddings said the landlord delivered her notice at 10:30 p.m. on May 30. She and other residents converged in the hallway to discuss the news. Most were in shock, she said.
“They’re not giving us any information. They haven’t shared anything with us other than the eviction. They haven’t been in my suite, they don’t even know the extent that may need renovations, so they obviously have a plan,” Giddings said. “It’s suspicious.”
According to the M1 Group’s website, the company builds and renovates rental properties. They have properties in North Vancouver, Vancouver and Nanaimo.
An available two-bedroom unit in Upper Lonsdale is listed at $2,200 a month.
No quick solutions
“We need more affordable housing,” Darcy said after the meeting. “We made very clear, in private member’s bills … that we would change the laws that relate to renovictions.”
But she admits new legislation will come too late for the people at 322 Seventh St. With a 15-day time limit to file a dispute with the Residential Tenancy Branch, most residents had until Wednesday, June 14 to file, otherwise the eviction notice would be official (after press deadlines).
On Wednesday, residents of the Seventh Street apartment building were expected to submit a formal dispute application with the Residential Tenancy Branch. If successful, it could delay the evictions long enough for tenants to put together evidence proving the proposed renovations aren’t extensive enough to warrant eviction.
“I understand people’s frustration completely; it is the number 1 issue I heard on the doorstep. … It’s an enormous issue,” Darcy said.
“We’re going to make change, but it won’t happen quickly enough for these people, so we’re trying to support them to take this on in any way that they can in the short term.”
