Some tenants of an apartment building in Kingston, Ont., say they have been suffering through the recent heat wave with no air conditioning, with little communication from their property management company on when the central air will be fixed.
Rob Katzel says the air at his Princess Street apartment building, managed by Toronto-based DMS Property Management, hasn’t worked for over a month.
When Global News visited his apartment Thursday, his thermostat read 85 F, which is just below 30 C.
Katzel said prior to Thursday, attempts to contact DMS Property Management about the air conditioning have yielded very little results.
“There’s no communication from them to what’s going on except ‘our techs are working on it,'” Katzel said.
Katzel said a pipe burst in one of the other tenant’s apartments in early June. Although the pipe issue was fixed, airflow through his vent has been almost non-existent, and what little air he’s getting has been warm.
He says it has not only been uncomfortable to live in, but difficult due to his respiratory challenges which include asthma and pulmonary embolism.
Nikki Moberly, another tenant in the building who recently had a baby, says she and her newborn have had to endure the extreme heat without much relief.
“I can’t even have a bath right now because I’m healing from a caesarian as well, so no baths for me. And (my baby) still has his umbilical cord on, so I can’t give him a bath yet either,” Moberly told Global News.
Although there is a pool on the property, Katzel says it hasn’t been open to tenants for roughly two years, so taking a dip to cool off hasn’t been an option in the extreme heat.
According to the Kingston Community Legal Clinic, because Katzel’s rent includes central air, the property company must repair it if it breaks.
DMS Property Management has yet to respond to requests for comment, but Katzel said the company sent out a mass email to tenants late Thursday morning after Global News had reached out.
“The air conditioning system is operating,” the email read. “However, we believe airflow is an issue,” it said.
The company message said they will be entering units Friday to try to resolve the issue. It added that the property managers are working with public health to have the pool opened within the next week.
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