Despite government orders, Vancouver tenants say landlord failed to make repairs

Dan Fumano: Tenants of a Vancouver apartment building say they are angry at their landlords for failing to make repairs and frustrated with government for not holding the property owners to account.

Residents of a West End apartment building scored what they thought were a pair of victories in November, when both the province and city hall ordered their landlord to fix poor air quality and water damage.

Recommended Videos

“It felt like, ‘Finally, the inspectors are doing something,’” said John Goncalves, a resident of the Regency Park tower on Cardero Street.

That sense of relief was short-lived.

The city ordered Larco to repair all units with water-damaged ceilings, walls and floors by Dec. 22, but Goncalves and other tenants say that deadline passed without the repairs.

The province’s Residential Tenancy Branch ordered Larco in November to replace the flooring in one water-damaged Regency Park apartment by Nov. 26, repair the unit’s walls and ceilings by Dec. 10, hire a licensed contractor to complete an air quality test by Dec. 15, and give the tenant a copy of the test by Dec. 20.

The tenant behind the complaint declined to be interviewed, but told neighbours this week that repairs had not been completed and they had no information about when an air quality test might be performed.

Goncalves said it seems rules only apply to some people but not all.

“The law is only for poor people like me. The law is not for powerful people like Larco.”

Larco Investments is owned by the Laljis, one of Canada’s wealthiest families. The multibillionaires’ companies own hundreds of properties across the country, including the Hotel Vancouver, West Vancouver’s Park Royal Shopping Centre, and other large hotels and apartment buildings.

In September, Larco filed a response in B.C. Supreme Court to the Regency Park tenants’ lawsuit, denying the allegations and saying that the company “met the standard of care of a reasonably prudent residential building owner and operator in all aspects of its day-to-day operations in order to ensure the health, safety, and right of peaceful and quiet enjoyment of Regency Park residents were upheld.”

The city’s November order says that failure to comply would result in the matter being referred to the city prosecutor with a request to approve charges and conviction could lead to fines of $500 for each day that the offence continues.

That’s what Regency Park tenants want. On Dec. 22, the deadline for the city’s repair order, Goncalves emailed several city staffers and elected officials, urging them to refer the matter for prosecution.

“The safety of 170 families at 1225 Cardero St. is at risk, and immediate action is necessary to protect our health and well-being,” he wrote, citing air quality testing that found carbon dioxide and other pollutants in the building at levels far exceeding the limits set out by Health Canada.

The city would not tell Postmedia whether the matter had been referred for prosecution, and said in an emailed statement that because its property inspectors still have “an open case file and are actively investigating, we cannot share specific details regarding actions that may have been taken.”

City inspectors have been communicating with Larco about “standards of maintenance concerns” at Regency Park and another apartment building owned by the company, the city said. “To date, most of the issues have been resolved and the property owner is in the process of fixing the remaining items.”

The B.C. Ministry of Housing and Municipal Affairs said it “cannot comment on the specifics of any one decision.”

The enforcement unit was announced soon after the B.C. NDP formed a government in 2017, following years of advocates complaining about the branch’s inability to hold bad actors accountable. The unit has been staffed and operational since 2019.

“We want people to feel safe in their homes and it’s concerning to hear that tenants are distressed about the state of their housing,” the ministry said. “The province takes these issues seriously and has made significant improvements to the Residential Tenancy Branch to help renters get clearer resolutions, faster.”