Hamilton tenants without water sold ‘down the proverbial river’

Residents living without water at a derelict Hamilton apartment building for nearly two months were hoping for relief.

Instead, the city has sold them down the proverbial river," argues a longtime tenant of 1083 Main St. E.

I'm surprised. I'm appalled. I'm disbelieving. I'm in shock," David Galvin said Tuesday.

Galvin and fellow tenants of the Delta-area building were at city hall to watch the property standards committee hear their landlord's appeal of a municipal order to repair the plumbing by the now-passed deadline of Jan. 24.

To their disappointment, the citizen committee backed a joint submission of the city and landlord that confirmed the order, but also asserted the tenants must leave for repairs to be done.

The quasi-judicial body also agreed that a date to complete the work should await the results of a March 8 provincial tribunal hearing on the tenants' potential eviction.

Even before the water woes, 1083 Main St. Inc. had planned renovations to the 60-unit building that it argues require vacated units, which is the dispute before the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB).

Angela Smith, the paralegal for owner, told the committee that until the LTB issues a decision, we really can't provide a reasonable time frame" for the plumbing repairs.

After that, the committee may consider a reasonable compliance period," said city representative Sheena Watts, noting the joint submission was based on an agreed statement of facts.

The committee expects to reconvene within 45 days to consider a timeline, chair Thomas Lofchik told The Spectator.

Whether the tenants get out or not, I suppose, reflects the way the repairs can be done," he added.

None of this sits right with Galvin, who pointed out tenants didn't have an opportunity to inform the agreed statement of facts.

They've taken an entirely one-sided view of the whole situation."

Galvin is one of the handful in seven units clinging to the hope of staying in their homes amid the renovation plans.

The tenants have the support of tenant advocacy group Hamilton ACORN and have retained legal counsel to make their case before the LTB.

But they have also been without running water since Dec. 28, after a storm froze and burst pipes in the deteriorating building. The landlord shut off the water to prevent flooding.

Since then, they have relied on jugs and bottles, bought out of pocket or provided by the city, for such basic necessities as bathing, cooking and flushing toilets.

Smith told the committee her client has offered the tenants motel rooms but they haven't left.

Galvin said he has showered at the motel on North Service Road in Stoney Creek, but others aren't able to drive there or have pets.

There's also an overriding concern among the holdouts that the locks will be changed if they leave, added the resident of nearly 20 years.

Given conditions like that, who the hell's going to want to take the motel room?"

Also framing the struggle is a rental market that's increasingly out of reach for many Hamilton residents, while property owners empty older buildings to renovate them and jack rents.

One-bedroom units now go for an average of $1,868 a month and two-bedrooms $2,280, according to property listing service Rental.ca's latest national rent report.

None of the tenants can afford to pay market rent, including me," said Galvin, who noted his rent is just under $900 for a two-bedroom unit.

That's a steal," said the 70-year-old, who relies on Old Age Security and the Canada Pension Plan, but also works as a security guard. How ironic is this? At the city water plant."

In late January, after the order's compliance date passed, city officials expressed outrage over the continued lack of water, but expected action.

On Tuesday, Coun. Nrinder Nann, whose ward includes the Delta area, said she was astonished" to learn how the committee had handled the issue.

Nann said she'd heard from tenants that the landlord had removed the entire infrastructure to get the water running" rather than doing immediate repairs.

After the hearing, Smith of Caveat LLP declined to comment and later via email said she still awaited direction from her client on whether to respond to The Spectator's query about what work had been done.

Nann added she needed more clarity" from staff on how long tenants would be expected to leave for repairs and what support services might be offered.

A city spokesperson noted the municipality has provided tenants with 512 jugs of water at a cost of nearly $12,000. At the committee hearing, the property owner agreed to take over providing potable water to tenants."

ACORN, meanwhile, said tenants were in disbelief" of the city's position to further delay repair to the pipes and the return of water" to the tenants' units.

Teviah Moro is a reporter at The Spectator. tmoro@thespec.com