Verdun seniors say they're being renovicted
Seniors living in a Verdun apartment building say they’re being pushed out in an apparent renoviction.
A dozen seniors living in a building on Rielle Street received an eviction notice on Dec. 16. They have to be out by July.
"I bring in $1,200 a month and my rent is $796. I can’t find anything to rent at this price," said tenant Roger Grenier.
Tenants say the landlord told them in the summer that he planned to carry out major expansion work.
So far, no construction work has begun and the property is now listed on the real estate market for nearly $9 million.
Mass evictions are a troubling trend in the midst of a housing crisis, said Verdun housing advocate Lyn O'Donnell, from the Verdun Citizens' Action Committee.
"If you're evicted in Verdun, your chances of finding another place in your own community, in your own neighbourhood, are almost impossible," she said.
It's a worrisome situation, said Quebec Solidaire MNA for Verdun, Alejandra Zaga Mendez.
"We're asking today for the landlord to justify, say if the renovations being announced are really going to happen. Because that’s the reason he’s pushing the tenants to move," she said.
She also said while landlords have to justify evictions to the housing tribunal, the burden is on tenants to prove their tactics are abusive.
Quebec Housing Minister France-Elaine Duranceau said the province is looking into possibly strengthening the regulations around evictions.
"We're taking this seriously. We don’t want to make the rules, in general regarding lodging, more complicated but on this aspect of renovictions and everything, we’re looking at it closely," said Duranceau.
O'Donnell said evictions are particularly troubling for seniors, who rarely have the means to fight their case or find new housing.
"We see so many seniors facing eviction and the amount of anxiety and distress that we witness is shocking," she said.
CTV News reached out to the building's owner for comment but he did not respond.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'I just can't believe that it took so long': Body found in wreckage 3 months after deadly fire
A man accused of arson in a January Old Strathcona apartment fire is expected to be charged with manslaughter after a body was discovered in the burned building late last month.
No proof man lied to brother about number of kittens born in litter, B.C. tribunal rules
A man was denied a $5,000 payout from his brother after a B.C. tribunal dismissed his claim disputing how many kittens were born in a litter.
Snakes almost on a plane: U.S. TSA discovers a bag with small snakes in passenger's pants
According to an X post by the Transportation Security Administration, officers at the Miami International Airport found the small bag of snakes hidden in a passenger's trousers on April 26 at a checkpoint.
Russia puts Ukrainian President Zelenskyy on its wanted list
Russia has put Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on its wanted list, Russian state media reported Saturday, citing the interior ministry’s database.
The pros and cons of discussing mental health issues in the workplace
A group of lawyers has written what they call a groundbreaking book about how mental health is perceived in the legal profession.
Explosion at train station leads to discovery of stolen car on Montreal's South Shore: police
Police are investigating after a BMW exploded in the St-Lambert Exo train station parking lot on Montreal's South Shore.
A Chinese driver is praised for helping reduce casualties in a highway collapse that killed 48
A Chinese truck driver was praised in local media Saturday for parking his vehicle across a highway and preventing more cars from tumbling down a slope after a section of the road in the country's mountainous south collapsed and killed at least 48 people.
A candidate for Germany's key party was beaten up while campaigning for European elections
A candidate for Chancellor Olaf Scholz's center-left party in next month's election for the European Parliament was beaten up and seriously injured while campaigning in an eastern city, the party said Saturday.
Two killed after collision with truck on Hwy. 417 near Limoges, Ont.
Ontario Provincial Police say two people were killed after a car and a transport truck collided in the westbound lanes of Highway 417 near Limoges, Ont. on Tuesday afternoon.