A number of tenants of three residential buildings on Gorge Road East are organizing to fight their looming eviction as a Vancouver-based developer looks to demolish and redevelop the buildings.
The Victoria Tenants Union, which aims to advocate for renters and tenants, announced Jan. 24 that they are now working with the newly formed Gordreau Tenant Group to support the 141 families currently living in the Gordeau Apartments who would be evicted from their homes.
"Everybody's scared," said Shannon Butt, a member of the Gordeau Tenant Group. "Everybody doesn't know what they're going to do next. Because a lot of people [have] been here so long, our rent is below [market] right now, and if we do move, it's going to be at least double, if not maybe like a thousand more than what we're already paying."
The Gordreau Apartments are owned by Belmont Properties, the same property managers that own the two buildings on Sussex Street and Saunders Street in Esquimalt also slated for redevelopment. All of the properties are expected to be redeveloped by Intracorp Homes. The tenants say they were given until 2027 to find somewhere else to live.
As a result of the "demovictions" at the five buildings, the Gordreau Tenant Group and the Nelson Street Tenant Association, which was formed in support of the Esquimalt tenants, joined forces to create the Belmont Tenant Alliance.
"They are subject to Victoria's tenant assistance policy, just like the tenants in Esquimalt are with the Esquimalt tenant assistance policy," said Harland Bird, a member of the Victoria Tenants Union. "In fact, a better name for the tenant assistance policy, I think, would be the tenant removal policy, because that's really what it is. It doesn't assist these tenants. Very few, if any, of them feel that this is adequate assistance."
Similar to the Esquimalt tenant assistance policy, Victoria's policy recommends compensation for those being displaced by either a lump sum payment, free rent or both; financial assistance with moving expenses; relocation assistance by a tenant relocation coordinator and similar-priced alternate housing options. Tenants are also expected to be given the right of first refusal, or the right for tenants to return to the new building at a rent discount.
Though the policy is "better than nothing," according to Bird, it still isn't enough for the tenants to continue living comfortably without spending more than they need.
"A lot of these tenants have been in there for over a decade, and they're paying well below market rent because of that," said Bird. "The tenants have the right of first refusal when the new building is completed and they get first crack at moving back into that building at 20 per cent below market rent, which is essentially useless in this case. Who knows what market rent is going to be in five years when the building is completed."
Butt says they hope to talk further with the City of Victoria about changing the tenant assistance policy, and the group says they have been in contact with one councillor who seems open to exploring that idea, however, she's not sure if it can be done in time.
They are also calling on B.C. Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon to consider purchasing the buildings through the Rental Protection Fund and converting them into non-market housing.
"We are going to do everything we can to try and save our homes. We're all living mostly paycheque to paycheque, so it's scary. I don't even know where I would go from here," said Butt. "It's a lot of [unknowns], and it's quite scary, actually. It's quite sickening."
Belmont Properties did not respond to a request for comment, but in October Intracorp B.C. president Evan Allegretto told Victoria News, “It’s of the utmost importance to Intracorp to ensure that current tenants understand the process and the supports available to them. The Township of Esquimalt’s tenant assistance policy ensures that existing tenants are provided with relocation assistance, financial compensation, and the first opportunity to return to the building at below-market rents."
He also pointed to a third-party tenant support team, which would walk existing tenants through the process, timeline and assistance program.
