Residents unable to return home, still paying condo fees, 11 months after Kitchener townhouse fire

Several residents of a Kitchener townhouse complex are frustrated they still haven’t been able to return to their homes, 11 months after a fire.

On Oct. 24, 2023, flames tore through a unit on Rochefort Street and left multiple other residences with damage.

“Everything was just happening so fast. The fire kept spreading,” recalled Ada Nnoruka, who lives in a unit near the one that caught fire and was alerted to the flames by a neighbour knocking on her door.

Nnoruka fled her home that day with her baby.

“I just remember grabbing a blanket because it was cold that night,” she said.

Almost a year later, the building still needs repairs.

The fire caused significant structural damage to the upper levels of the building. (CTV News/Dan Lauckner)

Nnoruka, her husband Benedict Ibe, and several other residents have been left with no timeline for their return home.

Since the fire, Nnoruka and Ibe have lived in five AirBnBs.

They said getting an update on the repairs from the condominium’s management company, Millcreek Management, has been difficult.

“It’s been like literal crickets,” said Ibe. “Like, nothing.”

“We just want transparency,” Nnoruka added.

The couple said they’ve had to dig for whatever information they can find, but still have many questions.

“What is the cause of this delay? Like, when will all this be over? Because I would like to have my life back,” Ibe said.

Manuel Campos, another displaced homeowner, believes it is management’s job to inform owners about what’s going on.

“But it’s not what’s happening,” he said.

Campos’ unit has water damage. Even though his own homeowner’s insurance has already given him a cheque to cover the interior repairs, which remains on hold until property management gets the roof fixed.

“Without the outside being done, we can't go ahead,” Campos explained.

The City of Kitchener has confirmed a building permit to repair the fire damage was issued in December 2023.

The president of Millcreek Management, Kevin Moule, told CTV News on the phone that the delays are largely due to insurance, though he agrees that generally speaking it doesn’t usually take this long for the work to begin.

Moule said Millcreek Management is equally as frustrated.

“We’re kind of in the dark as well.”

When asked about the lack of communication, Moule said the property management company is not always kept in the loop. He said Millcreek has been transparent with the owners and that they don’t have all the answers.

“We can’t give them information we don’t have,” Moule told CTV News.

He said Millcreek recently received the scope of work and can now get quotes, in hopes of getting the repairs started, in his words, “imminently.”

Asela Bulner is another homeowner waiting for that to happen. His family’s home is on the other side of the unit where the fire started.

They had only been living in their home for a month before the fire forced them out.

The family is staying in a rental for now, but with his own insurance coverage dwindling, Bulner said some clarity would make a big difference.

“Give me a timeline, because then I can negotiate with my insurance, or I can negotiate with the bank, I can work towards something,” he argued.

Bulner also remains frustrated that, on top of mortgages and bills, he and the other owners still have to pay their monthly condo fees.

“They've been charging us $180 for no services that I'm using,” Bulner said. “I don’t throw my garbage [here], I don’t park here and I don’t even live here.”

When asked about the condo fees for owners that can’t live at their homes, Moule said Millcreek Management still needs to continue property maintenance and suggested homeowners check with their insurance companies to see if the condo fees are covered.