Advocates representing low-income tenants say the City of London’s new bylaw aimed to crack down on unlawful renovictions — evictions under the guise of renovations — is a step in the right direction, but lacks specific protections for tenants compared to other Ontario municipalities.
On Tuesday, members of London ACORN held a rally for stronger rent control and other protections in Ontario ahead of this week’s provincial election. But not everyone who was invited decided to attend.
Tenant rights advocates rallied in downtown London, Tuesday, calling on provincial political parties to tighten rent controls and put housing affordability at the forefront, with the provincial election days away. The rally, organized by tenant advocacy group ACORN, invited candidates from all political parties to discuss their plans to tackle the high cost of rental housing.
An anti-poverty and tenants group is pushing for rent control to become a ballot issue in Thursday’s provincial election, seemingly throwing its support behind the New Democrats just as a new survey shows housing affordability remains top of mind for many voters.
With hundreds of tenants in the city of Kitchener currently facing renoviction, local residents and housing advocates presented their case to city council on Monday night to fast-track by-laws to protect renters from landlords who use renovations as an excuse to evict tenants and increase rental prices.
Kitchener council is debating when they can start considering a report on a potential renoviction bylaw, but residents say the delay could cost them their homes. CTV’s Colton Wiens reports.
