Tenants at Kitchener complex told to move by end of April, but they're fighting to stay

Longtime renters of a Kitchener, Ont., townhouse complexsay the last six months have been stressful and full of uncertainty as amysterious new landlord took possession of their building and told them they must move out bythe end of April.

Jason Carroll, James Clarke and Nevin Kanji are among dozens oftenants living in the 14-unit complexon Blucher Street, some of whom say theyare being "renovicted"from their homes.

The interior of the unitsis being demolished andrenovated tobecome condominiums, reads a letter the tenants received from the new landlord's paralegal in November 2022,which CBCNews has seen.

The letteralso tells tenantsthe landlordwould be permanentlyterminating their tenancy and "due to the nature of the demolition and the subsequent work, the rental unit as it exists for you shall no longer continue to exist after the construction work."

In December,the tenantsreceived what is known as an N-13 form(a notice to end a tenancy for demolition, repair orconversion toanother use), whichsaid they would need to leave by April 30.

"They want us out because they are going to be converting those units into condominiums," Kanji said."For them, it's in their best interestto just make sure we're all out and they can sell the units or rent it to people who are going to pay a lot more."

Steep rental market

Carroll, his wife andtheir five children have been living at Blucher Street for over 10 years in a five-bedroom unit. Kanji has lived in herfive-bedroom unit for 18 years. Her son moved back in with her due the pandemic.

Clarke has also been living at hisfive-bedroom unit with his wife for 18 years and shares the home with his sister and a roommate.

Carroll, Clarke and Kanji paybetween $1,500 and $1,800 a month for their rental units well below the currentmarket rate for new tenants in Kitchener. All three say what they pay now is what their families can afford, and worry they won't be able to find a new home that meets their needs and their budgets.

"I tell you right now, there's nothing in the market that we fit for," Carroll said. "You find the odd [5-bedroom] place for $4,500 or $5,000 and that's not gonna work. I make just under $4,000 a month.

"It's scary. I don't know what's gonna happen after all this. I'm hoping, crossing my fingers that there will be some compassion," he added.

Carroll and Kanji said they were offered four months' rent in compensation from the landlord, but say it's not enough to cover moving costs, storage or first andlast month's rent even if they can find a place to live.

They say the complex community is mostly made up of seniors and families, and worry their neighbours also won't have anywhere to go after April.

"You're thoughts are everywhere, 'What am I going to do?'" Kanji said. "You're lost. You feel lost."

New landlord unknown

Carroll, Clarke and Kanji say communication with the landlord has been an issue since the complex was sold in 2019and say they often don't knowwho they are dealing with. Requests for repairs have gone ignored, Carroll and Clarke said.

Property records show the complex has changed hands twice since 2018. It was sold in November 2019 to Pier 4 Blucher Ltd. and then in November 2022 to67-71 Blucher Street Inc. It was not long after that second sale that tenants received the letter detailing of the renovation plans.

"Nobody knows who owns it," Clarke said, who wasthe complex superintendent before it was sold in 2019. "When we pay our rent it just goes to 67-71 Blucher Street Inc."

Clarke said the units are run-down and have not had proper upkeep in the 18 years he's lived in his unit. He said he's felt embarrassed when people comeover to visit.

"It's shameful for us to have visitors come visit us for a couple of days and get a shower in our bathtub," he said."Our bathtub is nasty looking. You can't really sit in the bathtub."

Move out: different experience

Steven Evans and his wife lived at the Blucher Street complex for 10 years. Theytold CBC Newstheir heatingvents "never worked,"ceilings in the bathroom were caving in, tiles were coming off in the bathroom floor and thehot water was unreliable.

The couple moved out April 1 and said they had a positive experience with the landlordduring that transition though they never knew the landlord'sname.Evans said they got help looking for a new place, the landlord provided a moving truck and helped offset the cost for first and last month's rent.

"There is stress in moving, but therewas no stress [in this move]," he said. "Because I had a heart attack last year, stress is not a thing I should be having."

CBC News attempted to contact the property owner for comment, and reached out to the paralegal acting on their behalf, but did not receive a reply.

Renovictionsbecome "rampant"

Carroll and Kanji are challenging the eviction notice at the Landlord Tenant Board (LTB)

"We really have no choice. Where am I going to go?" Carroll said, adding he is willing to pay a bit more rent if allowed back to his unit.

Jenaya Nixon and Michelle Knight, peer workers withthe Social Development Centre's eviction prevention team, are helping them with the process.

The N-13 form filed says tenants are being evictedbecause the landlord planned to demolish the rental unit or residential complex.

Nixon said as of March 30, the landlord for the Blucher Street complex did not have the building permits required from the City of Kitchener to proceed with the conversion and renovation.

Nixon said if the landlord doesn't have the required building permits by the time Blucher Street tenants have their hearing with the board, the landlord "will likely lose."

Number of N-13almost double since 2019

Nixon said most municipalities don't track renovictions, but through her work she and Knight believe the issue has become "rampant" in Waterloo region.

"I have, currently,three major cases of multiple tenants being renovicted," Nixon said, pointing tothe Blucher Street tenants as well as renovictionson AhrensStreet and Traynor Avenue in Kitchener.

According to the LTB, the number of N-13s the notice to end a tenancy because the landlordwants to demolish,repairor convert a rental unit hasalmost doubled between 2019 and 2022.

According to the Board:

• In 2019, 557 N-13s were issued.
• The Ontario government put a moratoriumon evictions from March 2020 to June 2021, during pandemic lockdown periods.
• In 2022, 1095 N-13s were issued.
• In 2023 betweenJan. 1 and Feb. 28,202N-13 notices werefiled.

Nixon saidsome landlords don'tproperlymaintainthe premises, in order tothen servetenants N-13 notices for needed renovation work.

Knight, whohas been with the Social Development Centre for two years,hasseen the pattern of renovictions grow in city cores and in rural areas and says the impact is sometimes underestimated.

"It's not just one tenant, it's families. So we hear of one renoviction, but we're not counting that's five displaced people," Knight said.

Knight and Nixon said renovictionstend to hit marginalizedcommunities thatoften paybelow market rent, are newcomers, seniors, LGBTQ+ communities, people with disabilities or who are on ODSP and Ontario Works.

Calls for protection, accountability

Tenants need better protectionandmore accountability.Mostdon't know their rights and manydon't fight their evictions or reach out for help, said Nixon and Knight.

They also say it's time for municipalities to step up and keep track of the issue.

"It's just very stressful and so this is why there needs to be better oversight and enforcement potentially at the municipal level like what's happening in Vancouver, [where] authorities ensurelandlords are respecting rights of tenants" Nixon said.

"We're sharing knowledge so tenants can stand up for themselves and we ask the cities, municipalities, the government: 'Stand with us,'" Knight said.

Last week, the provincial governmentannounced a plan to introduce new protections against renovictions, whichincludes giving tenants a 60-day grace period to move back in once renovations are done, and at the same rent they were paying before.

The plan also looks at increasing fines for landlords or corporations who breakthe law, andappointing 40 additional adjudicators and five office staffers to the LTBto help deal withlengthy backlogs built up duringthe pandemic lockdowns.

Nixon sees the move as a positive step, but would like to see more done on enforcement,rent protectionand data collection. Sheworries the onus to report landlords who are breaking the law willfallon the shoulders oftenants.

"If it's up to tenants to enforce these punishments, then the landlords will keep getting away with it because tenants are already exhausted, especially if they'regoing through renoviction. And to file [cases] with the Landlord Tenant Board is an exhausting and stressful process," she said.

City councillor acts

Kitchener Coun. Aislinn Clancy has been workingwith the Social Development Centre to raise awareness amongrenters in her ward. Shealso said the province'sannouncement is a step in the right direction, but would like to see rent controladdressed anda clear path on how the new ruleswill be enforced.

She said all levels of government havea role to play to protect and prevent tenants from being displaced due to unaffordable rent, renovictions and new development.

"We can't underestimate the harm that's being caused by the private sectoraffordable housing being lost and I think that's something that's being under-recognized and that I think we're correcting now," she said.

The City of Kitchener passed a motion in January asking staff to look at ways the city can better support tenants who are displaced by new development.

Clancy and Nixon both would like to see the province allocate funds toward eviction prevention and education for tenants to know their rights.