Watch the video above: Almost two full weeks without heat, residents at a north Toronto apartment bundle up for a return to cold. Mark Carcasole reports.
TORONTO – The landlord of an apartment building without heat or hot water could face fines of up to $5,000 per unit if the building’s broken furnace isn’t fixed soon.
The people living at 2779 Yonge Street have been without power for almost two weeks after issues with the furnace caused a carbon monoxide leak. The gas company won’t turn the heat back on until that leak is fixed.
This building has been the subject of complaints before, sparking more than two dozen city investigations in under two years. Some residents have been using space heaters and others have been forced to shower at a local community centre.
Judy, a resident in the building who would not give her last name when speaking to Global News Monday, said she’s been showing at a neighbour’s home.
“Everybody seems to be helping me,” Judy, said. “They seem to think that I need a lot of looking after, which is very nice.”
The cost to repair the furnace is estimated at approximately $100,000, a sum local councillor Jaye Robinson says the landlord is unable to pay.
The landlord, Bianca Pollak, refused to speak to Global News on camera Monday but confirmed she didn’t have the money to pay for the repairs.
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City bylaws require landlords to heat their building to at least 21 degrees Celsius but the space heaters distributed to residents don’t suffice. As a result, the city issued a $600 fine for each unit in the building last week. There are 11 units in the building.
This week, those fines might increase significantly.
“This week they can move up to as high as $5,000 per unit,” Robinson said Monday.
But Geordie Dent, a spokesperson for the Federation of Metro Tenants’ Associations, said fines won’t fix the broken furnace. Instead, he said, the city should fix the furnace and bill the landlord.
City data shows Pollak’s property has often been the subject of complaints. There have been 28 investigations by the city since she took ownership of the building at 2779 Yonge Street in 2012.
– With files from Mark Carcasole
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