Property owners protest Windsor’s rental licencing pilot project
Property owners protest Windsor’s rental licencing pilot project
About 100 people were outside city hall protesting the city’s new residential rental licencing by-law in Windsor, Ont. on Tuesday, Mar. 21, 2023. (Bob Bellacicco/CTV News Windsor)
It was a quiet yet passionate protest in front of city hall Tuesday as about 100 people showed up to share their objection to the city’s Rental Licensing Bylaw.
“A criminal records check. I've been a landlord for 30 years in this city. I’m getting a criminal record check?” property owner Diane Chauvin questioned.
Under the city’s new bylaw, a criminal records check is necessary for landlords in wards one and two in order to obtain a Residential Rental License. The fee, plus inspections and work needed could cost over $1,000.
“We are against this by-law because the city has lots of other tools already they have,” said realtor Johnny Zhuang.
And with spiking housing costs, landlords say it is just one more fee that will be passed on to tenants.
Property owner Ankit Belabiya feels picked on.
“Why not to everyone,” Belabiya said. “Why not to the whole city if it's actually a safety concern?”
Realtor Diane Chauvin shares the same disdain.
“I think it is discriminatory for everybody in wards one and two. Including the tenants,” she said.
However, Ward 1 city councilor Fred Francis doesn’t agree.
“It’s not discriminatory because the city was afforded the opportunity to do a pilot project for a number of years. Therefor it’s not discriminatory,” he said. “If it was just Wards 1 and 2 in perpetuity, forever, than yes it would be discriminatory.”
Anyone who owns properties with between one and four residential units in Wards 1 and 2 must apply for a license by May 31.
Landlords like Chauvin, say there has to be a better way.
“If you have a problem, a tenant calls in ‘I have a problem,’ landlord doesn't do anything then address that problem. Don't blanket us all with the same brush,” Chauvin said.
Belabiya feels there are measures in place to keep tenants safe.
“If they are really concerned about the safety they have everything,” Belabiya said. “They have a building department, they have a fire department. Go inspect the properties. Why slapping everything on the landlord?”
Francis says safety in rental units has been a concern for the past eight years he’s been on council.
“We’ve hired more by-law officers,” he said. “We’ve changed licensing. We’ve changed planning. We’ve changed different things that we can do to ensure that renters are not being taken advantage of, that rental properties are safe, orderly. We’ve done all that. This is the last measure.”
The licensing fee is $466 in the first year with a $275 renewal the next year.
“The licensing regime that we're implementing and the rules we're putting forward are taken from other municipalities as best practices.” Francis said. “That's what other municipalities are doing. We're essentially copying to see if it works here.”
At the moment, wildfires are burning across six provinces and one territory in Canada — and they’re still spreading in what’s being called an unprecedented fire season. While firefighters work tirelessly to battle the merciless flames and prevent further destruction, scientists say the wildfires are linked to climate change and that this will be the new normal.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he raised concerns about reports that LGBTQ2S+ rights and democracy are under threat in Poland during a Friday visit with its prime minister, Mateusz Morawiecki, in Toronto.
Air Canada says travellers should be prepared for further flight disruptions as it works to return service to normal following a technical malfunction Thursday.
As more Canadians pass their family cottages down to the next generation, 'major shifts' in the ownership of recreational homes will occur, according to Re/Max. But amid concerns around the cost of housing, some may be wondering whether they can afford to keep that family cottage. Here's what younger generations need to know about inheriting a recreational property and the market today.
A 38-year-old sergeant in the Canadian Army was fined $3,000 and issued a severe reprimand after he made what a military judge described as 'utterly disgusting' anti-Jewish comments while conducting an infantry training course in 2021.
Pierre Poilievre is off to Manitoba to rally Conservative supporters ahead of a byelection that Maxime Bernier is hoping will send him back to Parliament. The far-right People's Party of Canada leader lost his Quebec seat in the 2019 federal vote and lost again in the 2021 election.
The number of people in Canada with inflammatory bowel disease is increasing rapidly and is expected to grow to 470,000 by 2035, according to a new report from Crohn's and Colitis Canada.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he is committed to keeping David Johnston in place as Canada's special rapporteur on foreign interference, despite a majority of MPs voting in favour of his stepping down from the gig.
Police charged three men, believed to be members of a street gang, with the attempted murder of a 65-year-old man who was shot 13 times while walking his dog in Schomberg in February.
A popular beach in Bracebridge is open to the public two days after sewing needles were found in the water, but a second beach has since closed over safety concerns.
There will be a lot of music, revelry and fun in downtown Sudbury on Friday evening as the Downtown Sudbury Business Improvement Association launches its 'Ultimate Summer Kick-Off' Party. For many, it also marks the unofficial start to patio season.
A popular beach in Bracebridge is open to the public two days after sewing needles were found in the water, but a second beach has since closed over safety concerns.
Gatineau police arrested an 18-year-old man in connection to the investigation into a hidden camera discovered in the washroom at an elementary school.
Residents turning up the air conditioners on the hottest June 1 in Ottawa history likely caused hydro systems to overload, knocking out power to customers in the west end, Hydro Ottawa says.
Three Toronto men have been charged with attempted murder after they allegedly shot an innocent dog walker in Schomberg, Ont. in a case of mistaken identity.
Montreal police (SPVM) said on Friday that the body of Feng Tian, 17, was found lifeless in Contrecoeur. A $20,000 reward was offered to anyone with information about the teenager's whereabouts after he went missing from his Notre-Dame-de-Grace (NDG) neighbourhood in October of last year.
Planning to pass time in Montreal's many parks this summer? Check yourself for ticks, warns one woman who recently contracted Lyme disease. Jasmine Rochereul, 23, says she spent much of last summer sprawled in city parks, where she believes she picked up the tick-borne illness.
A bronze statue of Queen Elizabeth that was toppled and damaged by protesters two years ago was put back in its place Friday on the grounds of the Manitoba legislature after a lengthy set of repairs.
A dozen sheriffs and Calgary Police officers roamed Calgary's core for three months, but the provincial pilot program is officially over as of this week.
A Calgary father and son face a lengthy list of criminal charges after being arrested in connection with the sexual exploitation, assault and extortion of multiple teen girls.
About 100 people were outside city hall protesting the city’s new residential rental licencing by-law in Windsor, Ont. on Tuesday, Mar. 21, 2023. (Bob Bellacicco/CTV News Windsor)
