Seniors at Montreal's Mont-Carmel residence win battle to avoid eviction

Seniors living at a downtown Montreal apartment complex who feared they would be evicted received some good news after a legal battle that has been waging for over two years.

The save Mont-Carmel committee (Comite Sauvons le Mont-Carmel) sent a message to residents on Rene-Levesque Boulevard and their allies that the building's owner Henry Zavryiev "is backing down and giving up on evicting the current residents."

The Residence Mont-Carmel used to provide nursing care for seniors. It was purchased in December 2021 by Henry Zavriyev, who immediately announced he would return the building to a regular housing complex, and was accused of pressuring tenants to cancel their leases. The fight eventually escalated to Quebec’s Court of Appeal.

He sent a letter to residents on March 12 advising them that he was revoking the eviction notices.

"This setback is certainly a victory, but it is only a partial one, given that some residents have left along the way and that there are also those who, under pressure and for fear of being evicted, have signed new leases not linked to RPA certification and who are still living in Mont-Carmel," said committee member Constance Vaudrin.

Vaudrin said that originally, Mont-Carmel had 216 RPA (rent controlled) units, and now there are 47.

"We can't be satisfied with this situation. The owner must honour his commitments under the sales contract," she said.

A news release from the committee says that Zavriyev sent a letter to the residence that he would allow the residents to remain and renounced the eviction notices he sent in Jan. 2022, shortly after he purchased the building.

"This waiver will probably put an end to the eviction notices being contested by residents before the Tribunal administratif du logement (TAL)," the release reads.

The committee said the evictions waiver does not end the residents' complaints before the housing tribunal for damages, which is ongoing, or the contempt of court case in Quebec Superior Court, which wrapped up in July and is awaiting a ruling.

The committee said that the building's owner has demonstrated a "lack of interest in ensuring the well-being of the seniors who live there."

"Living conditions at the residence have deteriorated over the last two years in terms of repairs, health and safety, not to mention the energy we have had to devote to regaining access to some of the communal areas. There's a lot of catching up to do," said committee member Marie-Paule Lebel.

There is a meeting set up for allies and residents on March 26 at the Écomusée du fier monde.