Sudbury tenants mark one year without a working elevator

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Sudbury apartment building's elevator now broken for a full year

Sudbury tenants frustrated by 8-month elevator outage

Tenants of a five-storey apartment building at 285 Lourdes Street in Greater Sudbury are marking a grim anniversary: one full year without a functioning elevator.

The building’s sole elevator was shut down for repairs in November 2024, creating a significant barrier for its many residents who are elderly or have disabilities, despite previous attempts to seek formal recourse.

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For fourth-floor resident Shirley Fortin, the past year has meant near-total isolation. With COPD and limited mobility, she has only left her apartment twice since the elevator stopped working.

“It’s frustrating. Like, I mean, I cry every single day. There’s nothing to look forward to,” she said.

“Christmas is coming. How am I supposed to do any shopping for my grandchildren? You know, or my daughter or my son?”

Her daily life has been stripped of basic necessities.

“I was told in the beginning, if I wanted to leave the building to call EMS. Well, they have better things to do than to bring people up and down the stairs,” Fortin said.

“I can’t do my laundry because it’s on the main floor. I can’t get my mail. So, it’s just been really stressful.”

Cascade of hardship

Andrea Gustafson, a 10-year tenant who lives on the fifth floor and has a disability, said every essential task now requires a difficult calculation.

The situation became particularly dire when her father was hospitalized.

“There was a portion of the year where my dad was in the hospital. He was very sick. He was dying and so I was having to do five flights of stairs three times a day to go and be with him at the hospital.”

She noted that the financial burden is also mounting for tenants, many of whom are on assistance.

Gustafson told CTV News that many tenants had filed applications with the Landlord and Tenant Board, the board itself confirms there are currently no active files involving the address. Two previous files related to 285 Lourdes Street were closed earlier in the year.

Conflicting stories, lack of communication

Communication from the building’s management has been inconsistent, leaving tenants in the dark. The building is owned by Centreville Non-Profit Housing, which has not responded to CTV News’ emails as of the time of this publication, and is run by Luxor Property Management.

“The problem is we are being told one thing. The other companies involved, like the elevator company, the inspection company, they’re giving us different stories and so we don’t actually know what’s going on,” Gustafson said.

Cory Vaillaincourt, Luxor’s property manager, declined a request for an interview but stated that KONE Canada is collaborating with the Technical Standards and Safety Authority (TSSA) to fix the elevator by the end of this month.

This promise of progress is met with skepticism by residents like fourth-floor tenant Veronica Tackaberry, who has been chronically disabled for a decade.

“It’s inhumane,” she said.

“I’d like to believe they’re going to get it fixed. But will it be this time? Probably not.”

City and regulator await progress

In response to inquiries by CTV News, the City of Greater Sudbury indicated it is aware of the situation.

Meanwhile, the TSSA provided an update that suggests a resolution may not be imminent.

A spokesperson said inspectors identified several issues during an inspection in September 2025 and issued orders that must be addressed.

“At this time, TSSA has not yet been contacted by the contractor to arrange a follow-up inspection,” the authority wrote in an email, confirming the elevator will remain out of service until all safety issues are resolved.

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• Tenants of Sudbury residential complex waiting 8 months for elevator to be repaired