Residential Tenancy Branch investigating mould-infested Burnaby building slated for redevelopment

Slow progress on mould-infested Burnaby apartment building Residents in a mould-infested Burnaby building fear slow progress on repairs could be a sign the owner is trying to force them out.

BURNABY, B.C. — Residents of a low-rise apartment building near Metrotown fear slow progress on repairs could be a sign the owner, who wants to knock the building down, is trying to force them out.

Shiny new high-rises in the neighbourhood cast shadows all around the Dow Avenue walk-up, and the owner has already submitted a redevelopment application to the City of Burnaby, with plans for a pair of condo towers and a new rental building.

But, it’s the condition of the existing building that has residents concerned.

“In February, the ceiling collapsed in the main area,” said Serena Lowe, a long-time resident. “A giant, gaping hole with mould coming out if it.”

The hallway ceiling sat open and exposed for weeks, until tenants called CTV News to complain about it, and the condition of their own suites which have cracked, saggy ceilings.

Following a CTV News story on March 6, work crews put plastic over the exposed mouldy ceilings in the common areas, and also tore down sections of the ceiling inside some suites, exposing more mould.

In Shoko Bekideh’s suite, the plastic in the kitchen drooped to eye level, filled with murky water and bits of black mould.

She has since been temporarily moved into an apartment in downtown Vancouver, but says it is far from her work and she hasn’t been offered any compensation for the inconvenience.

The building’s owner, Matchpoint Development, has offices in Kerrisdale on the west side of Vancouver.

Staff there allowed CTV News to speak to their boss on the phone.

Initially, the man identified only as Finn could not say what was being done to protect the health and safety of residents at the Dow Avenue building, but later in the day the company provided CTV News with a written statement.

“We sincerely regret the inconvenience to tenants of Dow Avenue as we move through necessary repairs and in the interim, have offered other accommodation to ensure their safety,” the company said.

Some residents have not taken up the offer, in part because the temporary accommodations being offered are far from Burnaby, and also because they are not confident the repairs will move forward in a timely manner.

“It’s really far away, it’s far from Burnaby. They don’t pay for gas or food,” said Lowe. “And also, they don’t give us a timeline. We’re not sure that we’ll be let back in at all.”

Matchpoint submitted its redevelopment application in April of 2020 but the City of Burnaby said it is still in the early stages.

In March of last year the city adopted an updated Tenant Assistance Policy specifically to help renters living in older buildings slated to be knocked down for redevelopment.

The policy spells out what tenants are entitled to, including help with moving expenses, rent top-ups on temporary accommodations during construction, and the right to move back into one of the new rental suites at the same rates they were paying in the old building.

But the policy only applies to redevelopments and not situations where emergency repairs require tenants to move out.

That has many on Dow Avenue feeling hopeless about their situation.

“They don’t want to fix the roof. It’s very expensive,” said Lowe. “And it might be better (for the developer) to just get the tenants out so that they don’t have to compensate them under Burnaby’s Tenant Assistance Policy.”

In an email, the City of Burnaby said it has been in contact with Matchpoint Development about the situation and reminded the company of its obligations to ensure occupied buildings and properties on rezoning applications must continue to comply with health, safety and housing standards or it could delay the application.

According to Attorney General David Eby’s office, the Compliance and Enforcement Unit of the Residential Tenancy Branch opened an investigation into the situation on March 8, the Monday following the first CTV News story about concerns at the building.