Kingston Ont. tenant’s apartment left in disrepair by contractor

Dale Campbell scrolls through images on his phone – looking at the damage he documented after a contractor showed up to investigate a leak in the apartment below.

Holes cut through the drywall behind a toilet, in the ceiling, even in the shower.

“On a Saturday night he knocked on the door. He came in and started cutting holes looking for a leak. He said he found a pin-leak or whatever. Then he fixed that and he was gone,” Campell said.

He says that was at the end of August and the contractor hasn’t returned to fix anything.

“Well, I’ve gotta tape up the hole in the shower, to have a shower. Or the people downstairs would have a flood,” Campbell said. “It’s terrible. The pictures don’t lie.”

His landlord, the Kingston Frontenac housing corporation, says it’s aware of the situation inside Campbell’s bathroom, but say the repairs could still take some time.

That’s because they’re dealing with a backlog of work orders caused by a lack of available contractors.

“There is a lack of skilled-trades,” Kingston Frontenac Housing Corporation CEO, Mary-Lynne Cousins Brame said. “And due to COVID, many of the contractors such as KFHC have a backlog of work to be done.”

Campbell says this isn’t the first major issue he’s had to deal with while living here.

2:42 KFHC tenants speak about “terrible” living standards

He says he was forced out of his apartment for five months due to a cockroach infestation and says he can’t live this way much longer.

“How long’s a person gotta wait?” Campbell asked. “I can’t have company come over and go into the washroom and see that … I’m not an animal.”

The housing corporation says they’re prioritizing projects because of the backlog, with those that could lead to more damage getting done first.

“I just want to apologize to our tenants, that repairs are taking time,” Cousins Brame said, “and we appreciate their patience as we work through the backlog.”

So for now, taping over these holes will continue to be part of Campbell’s daily routine.