250 Frederick Street ownership tied to alleged reno-victions in London, Hamilton
An investor with ties to apartment buildings across Ontario appears to be connected to 250 Frederick Street in Kitchener.
The building has been subject to allegations of illegal evictions and pressure tactics to try and force people out.
At the very least, tenants of 250 Frederick Street are sending their money to a numbered company in which Michael Klein is the sole director.
Records obtained by renters rights advocacy group ACORN shows Klein is also tied to buildings in London and Hamilton.
In London, soon after the Webster Street Apartments were sold to a new buyer, some tenants received N13 eviction notices.
As with Frederick Street, tenants of the London property also send their monthly rental cheques to the same numbered company directed by Klein.
In Hamilton, an apartment complex on Melvin Street has also been linked to Klein.
Again, tenants in those building have made claims of reno-victions.
Within the organization ACORN, the name Michael Klein is well known.
“Very well known, I would say pretty renowned,” said Jacquie Wells, a former tenant at 250 Frederick Street and current member of K-W ACORN.
Wells said Klein’s involvement set of red flag right away.
“When I first reached out to ACORN about the building being purchased, I told them that it was Michael Klein and they were very concerned,” said Wells.
Wells said the fact it is hard to determine who owns the building is by design.
“He hides behind numbered companies and he puts himself at arm's length and that is a strategy so that people can't kind of establish a pattern of behavior,” said Wells.
Putting the Pieces together
The listed owner of 250 Frederick Street is corporation called 250 Frederick Inc. it’s listed director is a person name Ludmila Karakulov, a search for information on Karakulov found very little information.
Tenants in both Frederick Street and Webster Street apartments were asked to complete a pre-authorized debit plan to 1524256 Ontario Limited.
A record search for 1524256 Ontario Limited show the company director as Michael Klein.
In Hamilton tenant’s received official letter from Torbolton LTD.
A record’s search shows Michael Klein is the director of TorBolton LTD.
According to ACORN, to help improve transparency they believe Ontario should create a landlord registry.
“So that landlords actually have to be publicly known who they are so people can find out who their landlords are on a publicly available landlord registry.”
CTV News reached out on numerous occasions to Michael Klein, including asking the management at 250 Frederick Street for contact information. No contact information has been provided and limited other contact information is publically available.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Signs of Alzheimer’s were everywhere. Then his brain improved
Blood biomarkers of telltale signs of early Alzheimer’s disease in the brain of his patient, 55-year-old entrepreneur Simon Nicholls, had all but disappeared in a mere 14 months.
Box tree moths have infested Ontario and experts say more are coming. Here's what to do to protect your garden
An invasive moth species is on the rise in Canada and, if you've planted a certain shrub, it could stand to ruin your garden.
Lyon-bound Air Canada Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner from Montreal turns back midflight due to pressurization alert
Passengers heading from Montreal to Lyon, France on Friday were forced to return home and depart the next day after a pressurization indication was detected in flight.
Oilers dominate Canucks, win to force deciding Game 7
The Edmonton Oilers avoided elimination from the NHL playoffs Saturday night, beating the visiting Vancouver Canucks 5-1 in Game 6 of their second-round series.
The eight most expensive homes for sale in Ottawa this spring
Ottawa's ultra luxury housing market is blooming like the tulips this spring, with a significant increase in the number of homes sold worth more than $2 million.
B.C. pipeline company argues its 'haulers' are not trucks, for tax purposes
A contractor working on the Coastal GasLink pipeline has been denied more than $333,000 worth of tax rebates because pieces of machinery it purchased – and claimed were not trucks – were deemed sufficiently truck-like in B.C. Supreme Court.
$500K-worth of elvers seized at Toronto airport
Fishery and border service officers seized more than 100 kilograms of unauthorized elvers at the Toronto Pearson International Airport on Wednesday.
Usyk beats Fury by split decision, becomes undisputed heavyweight champion
Oleksandr Usyk defeated Tyson Fury by split decision to become the first undisputed heavyweight boxing champion in 24 years.
To plant or not to plant? Gardening tips for May long weekend
May long weekend is finally here, and with the extra time off you may be getting the itch to head out to your garden and plant. However, the old debate whether you should plant now, or wait, is still ever-present.