The building at 91 West Seymour St. has been boarded up for the last week (Image Credit: CFJC Today)

By Chad Klassen

FIRE HAZARD

Progress being made on West Seymour property, residents waiting to return

Nov 1, 2022 | 2:20 PM

KAMLOOPS — It was Oct. 20 when up to 25 people were evicted from their residence at 91 West Seymour Street.

Faulty smoke alarms and evidence of hoarding was a major concern for Kamloops Fire Rescue, who ordered the building cleared until deemed safe again.

The 10 tenants on the lease have been in hotels, but their time has run out and they’re back on the streets alongside the other residents.

“I’d like to see somebody, somewhere offer us housing to get us out of the cold,” said Dion Livingstone, who lived in the building. “We sleep outside with no blankets and no heaters. I would just like to see somebody donate some of these things for some of these people here.”

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The group will be camping outside city hall until they’re allowed back in. Kamloops Fire Rescue says there is progress being made.

“Today, the alarm company was supposed to be on site to try and get the fire alarm system repaired, including repairing smoke alarms, heat detectors, putting some anti-tamper devices in to get that operational,” said fire chief Ken Uzeloc. “Then there’s an overall contractor that’s been hired to oversee the repairs — electrical, plumbing.”

Uzeloc says it’ll take another two to three weeks before anyone can return. He says the landlord has been cooperative throughout.

“There’s a general willingness to get things done quickly. We’ve identified those pieces that are absolutely critical to get done first, so that we can get people back in the building, and then pieces that can be done while the building is occupied,” said Uzeloc.

Image Credit: CFJC Today

As for the tenants waiting to get back in, many will be on the streets until such time. According to the Tenancy Resource and Advisory Centre (TRAC), which offers free advice for tenants in B.C., the landlord is not legally obligated to pay for tenants’ hotels up front. However, people who are on the lease and staying there legally can stay in hotels and be reimbursed later.

“That said, getting to a hearing at the Residential Tenancy Branch for a monetary claim will take months,” noted Zuzana Modrovic from TRAC. “A tenant may want to try to negotiate with the landlord ahead of time if they’d like to find a resolution before that.”

The former residents at 91 West Seymour Street, who’ve had little luck with the landlord, they say, are just looking for any kind of help.

“Some of us have PWD [persons with disabilities], some of us are living with multiple disabilities and some people don’t know how to go about things to find information out on their own,” noted Livingstone. “So we’re trying to unite and do this as a bit of a team effort.”

CFJC Today reached out to the landlord Daljinder Singh Aujla, who co-owns the property, but he would not comment further on the situation.