St. Thomas apartment closed after alleged renovictions lead to 'severe fire code deficiencies'

The St. Thomas Fire Department has closed this building on Elm Street, seen on Oct. 31, 2024, following numerous fire code violations. (Bryan Bicknell/CTV News London)

The St. Thomas Fire Department says it was an extreme case of renoviction that led to the closure of an apartment building in the south end of the city, following numerous safety violations.

“During an inspection from a complaint, we came across a building that has severe fire code deficiencies to the point that it wasn’t safe to let the people stay in the building,” explained Chief Fire Prevention Officer Kim Destun.

Destun said the owner of the Elm Street walkup apartment building had been renovating, and knocked out a number of fire walls, which prevent spreading between units.

She said the renovation work was being done without permits.

Many of the two dozen tenants had already moved out of the building over the last few weeks, but there were still about a half dozen people residing in unsafe conditions in the building, she said.

She said many of the tenants were clients of the Canadian Mental Health Association, who were being enticed with cash to vacate their units.

Property standards and unsafe building notices are seen on the door of an apartment building on Elm Street in St. Thomas on Oct. 31, 2024. (Bryan Bicknell/CTV News London)

“It was renovictions essentially, what was going on. The landlords were offering cash for keys to the vulnerable people that were in there. Of course, if you offer $5,000 someone who doesn’t have much, it seems like a really good deal at the time. But when they realize there’s not much housing to be had out there, we’re in a crunch, it gets problematic,” said Destun.

The building is registered to a numbered company from Hamilton.

Robin Slade, the co-chair of the London Central and Surrounding Area Chapter of rental advocacy group ACORN Canada, said it’s harder to hold property owners accountable when tenants don’t actually know who their landlords are.

“They absolutely are hiding behind this, and it’s making it harder to identify when these companies come up at the landlord tenant board for peoples’ hearings, they’re harder to tie together and prove a pattern,” she explained.

In the meantime, St. Thomas Social Services has secured alternate temporary accommodations for the displaced tenants.