Growing concern for Block 1 tenants over snow, garbage removal
Apartment management currently operating under creditor protection, granted last month
Snow has not been cleared from a Block 1 apartment complex in Stonebridge for weeks, according to tenants.
Several of them tell CBC they're concerned about maintenance and upkeep at the Cielo apartment complex.
Block 1 Property Management is operating under a creditor protection order issued last month by a British Columbia court. It's part of a group of companies owned by Vancouver businessman Tim Clark, who bought 15 properties in Saskatoon and Regina over the past seven years.
At 235 Willis Crescent in Stonebridge, one prospective tenant said on-site staff told her 75 per cent of the units are currently vacant.
A sworn affidavit from Clark last month indicated the building had "an occupancy rate of approximately 72 per cent for the units available to be leased."
Contractors leery of Block 1
Next door, at 241 Willis Crescent, plywood covers some exterior walls, as the building sits unfinished. The building is now the subject of at least $3.8 million in liens.
One waste disposal company told CBC it had done numerous waste collections on contract for Block 1, the last of which was done in November. It said Block 1 had not made any payments since June 2016.
The owner of another waste disposal company echoed similar concerns, although he said Block 1 has tried to maintain its buildings better than other companies do.
"These guys have been so disorganized on the accounting end," said Len Curtin, owner and operator of Len's Hauling. "But I've been treated very well,"
Tenants advised to keep paying rent, document problems
Tenants at the Cielo complex tell CBC as a term of their lease, the company collects rent through automated bank withdrawals each month. Some also noted Block 1 charged a number of fees for those living in its "premium" apartments.
"There's first month's rent, damage deposit and then there was $200 just for key fobs, a $150 move-in fee," one tenant told CBC News. He said he was paying more than $1,600 monthly rent for his two-bedroom apartment.
"A month after I signed my lease, they dropped the rent by three or four hundred dollars," he said.
Staff at Saskatchewan's Office of Residential Tenancies said tenants who encounter maintenance issues must document them with dates and signatures, giving building managers a "reasonable" amount of time to rectify the problem.
Senior Deputy Director Andrea Jorde noted tenants must continue paying rent as specified in their leases. However, she said documenting problems makes the case more clear, should a tenant choose to bring issues concerning building maintenance before the Office of Residential Tenancies.