Mile End resident says he's had it with the noise, trash from Airbnb next door
Building owner apologizes for raucous parties, promises to better enforce no-partying rules
A man living in Montreal's Mile End neighbourhood says he's fed up with the partying, excessive trash and late-night noise emanating from a new apartment building that's being rented out on Airbnb.
The five-unit building was built on Parc Avenue last year. Since then, the majority of the units have been rented out on the home-rental website.
One of the ads for the building boasts a high end penthouse with a private hot tub.
Sasha Johnson says living next to the apartment building is akin to living beside a night club, and says he's had to call the police on multiple occasions to report excessive partying and noise coming from the building.
He says recently, the situation has become worse.
"Maybe six weeks ago, it started to get really regular. One giant party after another, every night," he said.
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Johnson accepts that some noise comes with living in the popular neighbourhood, but says the excessive noise is waking up his young son at odd hours.
"Speaking with my neighbours, they also have young children. It gets to be a lot," he said.
Building owner apologetic, promises change
In an interview with CBC News, the owner of the building, Berish Schwimmer, said all but one unit is rented on Airbnb.
He apologized for the noise caused by the people staying in his units.
Schwimmer said his advertisements include a warning that partying isn't allowed after 11 p.m.
He added he's in the process of hiring a doorman to enforce that rule. As well, he said he will be more judicious in choosing which clients will be allowed to stay in the apartments.
Schwimmer provided CBC News with the text of a letter he said he will be handing out to neighbours of his building. It includes an apology for the noise, provides a number for residents to call should they encounter other issues.
"Our hopes are that our little hotel will improve the neighbourhood and not create a disturbance," it reads.
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In a statement, Airbnb said it has suspended Schwimmer and his properties from the platform pending an investigation.
"Hosting is a serious responsibility and those who fail to meet our community standards will be removed from the Airbnb community. We apologize to the affected residents for these disturbances," it says.