The board of directors at Sand Hills Cooperative, along with their lawyer, is meeting with Region of Waterloo housing officials on Thursday night to discuss ongoing issues at a Kitchener co-op.
Problems at Sand Hills surfaced in July when residents publicly complained about broken doors and windows, ongoing vandalism and lack of perimeter fencing to protect properties.
At the time, the building was being managed by Victoria Park Community Homes on the recommendation of housing officials with the Region of Waterloo. Three out of four units in the co-op are publicly subsidized.
Within 90 days of complaining, many of the building faults were fixed.
However, in August, Victoria Park Community Housing quit. One individual is now acting as a property manager, while another has taken over managing the building’s financials.
The board of Sand Hills has retained high profile Toronto lawyer Murray Klippenstein. Klippenstein previously worked with the George family during the Ipperwash Inquiry and is currently working on a G20 class action lawsuit.
“I was hired in approximately September. The board of the co-op was concerned about the management and their ability to run the co-op democratically”, says Klippenstein.
His main concern is ongoing maintenance around the building. “I saw signs of problems ahead if the Region and the co-op were not able to cooperate.”
In a statement, the Director of Housing for the Region says, “at this point no decisions have been made because we are still in the early stages. The Region has responsibility for ensuring community housing is properly managed, and this is the same responsibility boards have for their housing communities.”
Tonight’s meeting is the second between Klippenstein and regional housing representatives. Another is scheduled for December 2nd.
