Press Hits

A new national report by the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) finds that 44 per cent of low- and moderate-income tenants across the country do not have access to air conditioning, with most citing affordability as the main barrier. Based on a survey of 750 tenants, more than half of respondents identified extreme summer heat as the most serious issue in their buildings, while only 19 per cent said they had received any energy efficiency upgrades. Of those who did, one-third reported a rent increase following the improvements — reinforcing concerns, says Ottawa ACORN board member Eddy Roue, that climate retrofits are being used to justify unaffordable rent hikes.

Ottawa ACORN is once again renewing its calls to the City of Ottawa to implement a maximum heat bylaw as temperatures continue to intensify. Environment and Climate Change Canada’s weather outlook is predicting a hotter-than-normal summer across Ottawa, but many residents are left without a place to keep cool.

Many buildings in Ottawa still don’t contain air conditioning, and the cost of installing some is out of reach for many low and middle-income residents. According to a new report from the tenant organization ACORN, 44 per cent of low- to moderate-income tenants lack air conditioning in their units, with affordability cited as the main barrier to access. An additional 54 per cent of tenants cited extreme summer heat as their primary maintenance issue.

When Darlene Wesley’s landlord told her and other tenants of their small east Hamilton building to clear out for renovations, they protested. Those long-term residents of 309 Strathearne Ave. also told the property owner they expected to move back in at the same rent once the work was done. Such conditions governing existing tenants’ first right of refusal are enshrined in provincial legislation, but their landlord still re-rented the apartments and jacked up the rates. Once forced out, Fusaro managed to temporarily rent the apartment of an acquaintance they’d met through Hamilton ACORN, which helped take up the tenants’ battle to stay put.

The minister responsible for the Residential Tenancies Act concedes that Nova Scotia landlords are misusing fixed-term leases to circumvent the province’s rent cap. Speaking at the same meeting, Heather Clark, chair of the Halifax-Mainland chapter of ACORN Canada, said an ACORN fixed-term lease report shows an increase of 466 per cent since 2021 of tenants being evicted on a fixed-term lease while being good tenants and paying rent on time. The report also shows 35.7 per cent were evicted more than once and one in five ended up unhoused.

A Whalley residential development project once again came before council on May 12, along with a public hearing where residential tenants being displaced by it told the politicians they’re being left homeless. Kayla Watson of ACORN, a renters’ advocacy group, said Kwantlen Park Manor was home to 31 families, with most paying rent much lower than can be found “than in any apartment you can find in this area today. And once again, Surrey city hall is voting to displace the tenant families from their neighbourhood.

High temperatures prompted city council to direct staff in May 2023 to draft an “adequate temperature” bylaw, which would require landlords to ensure unit temperatures don’t exceed 26 C. That spring, members of the city’s public health committee heard from citizens and experts who said indoor temperatures in apartments can become dangerously hot without active cooling, which many buildings lack.