Advocacy group, Waterloo Region tenants call for anti-renoviction bylaws

Protesters are urging regional council to put the matter to a vote, requiring landlords to register buildings they own and a pay licensing fee.

Tenants and members of Waterloo Region ACORN are uniting in their push for stronger protections against what they call “bad-faith evictions.”

ACORN held a region-wide day of action on Tuesday, calling on the city councils of Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge to adopt anti-renoviction bylaws similar to the one recently passed in Hamilton.

The demand comes in response to the growing number of renovictions, where landlords evict tenants under the guise of making significant renovations, only to re-list the units at  much higher rents. According to ACORN, this practice has been contributing to the region's affordable housing crisis.

"There is a big disconnect between the cost of living and income," said Maribel Jagorin, co-chair of Waterloo Region ACORN and a tenant currently facing renoviction. "There is a housing crisis out there. How am I supposed to live? I can’t afford somewhere else, and there’s nothing out there for me. I am fighting for my affordable housing and my rights because everywhere I look I can only see greed and lack of balance. Landlords are privileged!”

Following in Hamilton’s footsteps

On Jan. 17, council for the City of Hamilton unanimously passed the "Renovations License and Relocation Bylaw."

The anti-renoviction measure was the result of a five-year campaign led by Hamilton ACORN, inspired by similar successful legislation in New Westminster, B.C.

Since its implementation in 2019, the New Westminster bylaw has effectively eliminated renovictions, reducing the number from 333 to zero.

Under Hamilton's new bylaw, landlords are required to:

- Apply for a license within seven days of issuing a Notice to End Tenancy (N13)

- Provide tenants with a Tenant’s Rights and Entitlements Package

- Offer temporary accommodation or a rental top-up for tenants who wish to exercise their right to return to their unit at the same rent after renovations.

Members of Waterloo Region ACORN are encouraged by Hamilton's success and are pushing for similar tenant protections in their own community.

Day of Action

Local ACORN members gathered virtually over Zoom on Tuesday for a “Region-Wide Day of Action.” The event focused on reviewing ACORN’s campaign for a renoviction bylaw and organizing phone blitzes to put pressure on the city councils in Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge to pass similar legislation.

A spokesperson for ACORN named a few local locations where tenants were given renoviction notices, including 267 Traynor Ave., 250 Frederick St. and 94 Beck St.

Tuesday’s meeting comes almost one year after Waterloo Region ACORN launched their own campaign for renoviction bylaws in the region.

At Monday night’s council meeting in Kitchener, councillors voted to “echo” the City of Toronto’s appeal to the provincial government to enact all regulations pertaining to Bill 97, Helping Homebuyers, Protecting Tenants Act, 2023.

Some of the regulations include rent control, requiring landlords to be responsible for finding accommodation or relocation assistance for tenants, and establishing a provincial registry that tracks rental rates, building ownership, AGIs and data on N12 and N13 notices.