Cockroaches, mice and rats are a common sight for some residents in Park Extension, who say they are being forced to live in squalid conditions.

Dozens of tenants at an apartment complex close to L'Acadie Blvd. say they've asked their building manager to do something about it, but have yet to get a response.

“People have a lot of exasperation about the situation and now with the rats, they are scared to go out, because they are scared to meet a rat,” said André Trépanier, who is a member of the Park Extension Action Committee.

Some residents who live in the apartment complex did not want to identify themselves, but told CTV seeing rats in their apartments is a regular occurrence.

One woman said she spots them every couple of days, adding that when she calls the building manager, he doesn’t step in to resolve the issue.

Right now, two out of 30 filed complaints against the building owner, Raamco International Properties Canadian Ltd., are before the Quebec rental board.

Recently, a judge ruled the company pay one tenant more than $4,000, saying the landlord systemically violated the tenant’s rights.

“The judge said the landlord only acts when he is forced to by the city inspector,” said Trepanier.

The city has intervened 27 times, said local city councillor Mary Deros.

“It's been constant, so we are kind of hoping that again with another intervention, the situation will be settled and citizens will be able to live in better surroundings,” she said.

Deros says this time the city is going a step further.

“The city now is looking at all the sewers in the area to see if one of the trap doors has either been displaced or is broken for the rats to come out,” she said.

The local tenants’ rights group said the city could be doing more.

“What we are asking for is not case-by-case but to have a global intervention,” said Trepanier. “(We want) the extermination of mice and cockroaches to be taken charge of by the city and then send the bill to the landlord after.”

Raamco did not return CTV’s requests for an interview.