Multi-building 'renoviction' brings big-city scourge to small-town Ontario, tenants say

Renters in a large multi-building apartment complex in Trenton, Ont., say their new landlord is attempting to push low-income tenants out — and bring big-city "renovictions" to small-town Ontario.

Earlier this year, tenants learned Mississauga-based property management company Bedford Properties had taken over ownership of the complex after its longtime owner and Trenton resident Stan Klemencic died. The company bought the buildings in February.

In March, it began issuing renovation notices to tenants in the four-building complex on Sidney Street in Trenton, the urban ward within the municipality of Quinte West, Ont.

I've worked my whole life, and now here we are on the verge of living in a tent.- Jenny McKee, tenant

The first round of notices arrived just over a month after tenants learned the building had been sold, according to Shannon Lawrence, who has lived in the complex for four years.

"The city basically bled into our small town, and now we've got city problems right here in Trenton," Lawrence said.

"We are seeing first-hand the effects of what happens when housing is a business and not a human right."

CBC made multiple attempts to contact Bedford Properties and its president including phone calls, emails and two rounds of tracked and registered mail over the course of two weeks. 

When reached by phone, the company's resident manager directed CBC to instead call the main office, which has not responded to any requests for comment or an interview.

112 units issued with notices

All 112 units have now been issued written notice of the renovations, Lawrence said.

In the first round of notices issued on March 17, tenants were told renovations could take as long as seven months and were offered $4,000 for terminating their lease.

"While I understand this notice may come as a surprise, we are well within our rights as building owners to terminate your tenancy and do the necessary improvements as required," the letter said.

The second round of notices offered residents who choose to move out during renovations financial compensation covering three months' rent, plus $500 for moving expenses. For those who terminate their lease, the offer is a lump-sum payment of $8,000.

The property manager provided no estimated timeline for the renovations in the second notice.

To terminate a lease in Ontario, a landlord must give proper notice and provide reasons for ending the tenancy.

If the tenant does not agree to move out, the landlord must apply for an eviction order issued by an adjudicator with the Landlord and Tenant Board.

Affected tenants are legally within their rights to return to their homes at rents no higher than what the landlord could have charged if they'd never left, but Lawrence is worried regardless.

She said she's concerned the landlord could pursue an exemption to the province's maximum allowable rent increase, which would allow Bedford to charge an extra percentage on top of the current 2.5 per cent allowed annually in Ontario.

Lawrence argues the offer amounts to a mass "renoviction," a term for when landlords use renovations as an excuse to drive tenants out — and rents up.

Many tenants on fixed income

Under the name Hands off our Homes, a group of tenants has been protesting outside the building since learning about the proposed renovations.

At a May 31 Quinte West council meeting, several tenants raised concerns about the new landlord.

Larry Green told council he's lived in the building for 38 years. 

"I have no problem in co-operating with a landlord to move my stuff out so they can do things in the apartment," Green said. "But I don't believe these apartments need to be gutted."

Another tenant, Jenny McKee, told council she doesn't know how she'd be able to make ends meet if she were to lose her apartment.

"I've worked my whole life, and now here we are on the verge of living in a tent," she said.

The building's occupants include a mix of single parents, low-income tenants and people collecting old age security or disability support, Lawrence said.

She said because so many of them are "extremely long-term" tenants, rents in the complex have stayed relatively low, even as the cost of housing has "skyrocketed" elsewhere in Trenton.

The result, Lawrence said, is that many can't afford to take the lump-sum payment and enter the rental market elsewhere.

Lawrence said she currently pays $1,037 per month all inclusive for her two-bedroom apartment. 

In Belleville, Ont., about 20 kilometres east of Trenton, Bedford Properties is charging between $1,645 and $1,750 for its two-bedroom units.

"If we lose our homes, we can't afford market rent," Lawrence said.

Property manager owns buildings across Ontario

A version of Bedford Properties and Estates Ltd. has existed since at least 2001, according to a corporate record search. Its current president is Mark Knodell.

As of publication, the average monthly rent for two-bedroom apartments across all buildings listed on the company's website was $1,713. For one-bedroom units, the average rent was $1,344.

The organization advertises four properties in Toronto, but also owns more than a dozen properties in smaller cities and towns across southern and eastern Ontario, including Fort Erie, Cornwall and Oshawa.

Although the company's website lists a link to Trenton, it does not currently include any apartments for rent there.

Bedford Properties bought the complex at a price shy of $20 million in February, according to land records.

'All about greed,' mayor says

Quinte West Mayor Jim Harrison, who's lived in the city for 80 years, said Trenton has not experienced a displacement of this scale in his lifetime.

Harrison knew the former owner and said the building has been maintained "meticulously."

"Some of [the tenants] have lived there a long time, and so this is their home," Harrison said. "This isn't fair treatment at all."

In his opinion, the property owner chose to pursue renovations only after realizing profits weren't as high as they'd originally hoped.

"This is all about greed," Harrison said.

Quinte West council passed a resolution at its May 31 council meeting urging the province to pass Bill 97, legislation designed to grant tenants stronger legal protections.

Harrison said the resolution was designed to support the displaced tenants and "encourage them to stand up and stay together."

Bill 97 passed into law June 8 as the Helping Homebuyers, Protecting Tenants Act. Among other changes, it doubled existing maximum fines for landlords and added requirements that a "person who has the prescribed qualifications" must sign off on renovation notices.

Bill doesn't go far enough, critic says

NDP housing critic Jessica Bell said although the act takes a "step in the right direction" by making it tougher for landlords to illegally evict, it stops short of the changes many tenants were hoping for.

"There's very little stopping bad landlords from doing the wrong thing," she said. "It's upon the tenant to be that Good Samaritan and that private investigator."

In an email to CBC, a spokesperson for Ontario Housing Minister Steve Clark pointed to recently added protections against renovations, demolitions and conversions.

But Lawrence said she's not convinced the new legislation will make a difference.

"A fine is a poor man's punishment," she said. "Regular people cannot afford to live in this province anymore."