Moncton Ward 2 city councillor Charles Léger says residents in his ward, which includes a large part of downtown, are frustrated to see boarded-up houses sit untouched for years at a time.
“What you’re seeing is one here and there on individual streets, and that’s problematic because then it does not allow the rest of the neighbourhood to really fully develop,” he said in an interview on Thursday.
He said the current process allows abandoned houses to stay that way for too long.
“What we see now sometimes is that the property is abandoned. We’re almost to the point of saying, ‘Ok what are the next steps?’ And then there’s a building permit issued. And then a little bit of work gets done and it stops. And then we start the process all over again. Meanwhile, the people in the neighbourhood are saying, ‘What’s going on here?'”
Léger wants council to revisit the issue and develop bylaws to enforce a timeline on fixing up or tearing down abandoned houses. He would also like to explore the possibility of converting the properties into affordable housing.
When the Rising Tide affordable housing initiative was announced in 2020, its business plan mentioned purchasing derelict buildings in order for them to be rented at an affordable rate.
Rising Tide has since opened a 21-unit affordable housing unit downtown, and has renovated and rented out existing properties.
Léger said a timeline could help organizations like Rising Tide acquire abandoned properties before they fall into disrepair.
While speaking to reporters after a city council meeting on Monday, fire Chief Conrad Landry said the fire department does weekly checks on abandoned houses to ensure they are properly boarded up and check on their structural integrity.
He said squatters will sometimes light fires, putting themselves and neighbouring properties at risk.
“They do still manage sometimes to break in, so we do check those on a regular basis,” Landry said.
Léger said he intends to raise the issue at council in the new year.