Tenants scramble after being forced from apartment

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This article was published 22/08/2023 (1120 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

WINNIPEG — One hand held a purple suitcase filled with her most prized possessions and the other clutched a cat carrier, as Brandy Genaille obeyed the order to leave her home Monday without knowing where she’d stay next.

“I don’t know where everybody’s going to go… Somebody should be helping us, like put us in a hotel… I don’t even know what I’m going to do with my cat,” said Genaille as she left the Adanac Apartments in the West End, which has had problems with gangs, drugs and violence.

She feared a shelter wouldn’t accept her cat, making it especially challenging to leave the apartments at 737-743 Sargent Ave.One hand held a purple suitcase filled with her most prized possessions and the other clutched a cat carrier, as Brandy Genaille obeyed the order to leave her home Monday without knowing where she’d stay next.

“I don’t know where everybody’s going to go… Somebody should be helping us, like put us in a hotel… I don’t even know what I’m going to do with my cat,” said Genaille as she left the Adanac Apartments in the West End, which has had problems with gangs, drugs and violence.

She feared a shelter wouldn’t accept her cat, making it especially challenging to leave the apartments at 737-743 Sargent Ave.

Another woman, who said she had been homeless in the past, said she planned to stay with a friend but wasn’t yet certain she would be able to do so.

“I’ll have to try and figure this out… I can’t take any food. I have no food, no money, no way of getting anywhere. But I’ll manage probably somehow,” said Janet, who did not give her last name.

Another resident was determined to stay in his home, arguing the site has a strong sense of community and its owners respond to tenants’ concerns.

“These people here are like family… This block is good. This is my home. I’m not moving my cats,” said Thomas Williams.

Main Street Project and St. Boniface Street Links outreach workers were on hand to offer displaced residents rides to a reception centre, where support workers aimed to help them connect with accommodation and other services. Some appeared to accept that option.

The order to vacate the building followed a WFPS inspection that found numerous fire and safety issues at the apartment building, including: a “significantly damaged” fire alarm system; suite doors that are damaged, missing or have holes; extension cords plugged into hallway outlets to provide power to suites that lack it; an absence of accessible fire extinguishers; and large items blocking a fire escape in multiple suites.

In addition, “no smoke alarms were present in any suite that were accessible at the time of the inspection,” the order states.

In an email, WFPS said its fire prevention staff have gone to the building 101 times since 2019 and its emergency crews responded to 542 fire and emergency medical calls at the site during the same period. WFPS also responded to five fires at the property last year and five so far this year.

The statement said WFPS reinspected the building Monday and deemed it to have “a number of unresolved deficiencies.”

Coun. Cindy Gilroy, whose ward contains the apartment block, said the city had no choice but to issue the order to protect the residents because the safety risks are so severe.

“We have to make sure that the lives and safety of people outweigh the fear of where people are going. I fully support the city on this just because this has been an ongoing concern,” said Gilroy.

The councillor urged the provincial government, which has jurisdiction over housing, to provide more intensive supports to low-income residents.

The Adanac Apartments are owned by Karin Harper-Penner and her husband, Patrick Penner. In a brief interview, Harper-Penner told the Free Press the building has at least 38 renters. Many people shared their suites with a roommate and others frequently allowed friends to stay.

She said work is well underway on repairs.

“It is a community in there and this is just blowing it up… We’ll be working 24/7 to get it resolved,” said Harper-Penner.

Al Hoeft, divisional secretary for public relations at the Salvation Army, said his organization, Main Street Project and Siloam Mission joined Manitoba employment and income assistance officials to try to support the displaced residents.

He said finding low-income housing options that are affordable and safe is not a new challenge.

“We want people housed but we want them housed safely … It’s an ongoing struggle,” said Hoeft.

In a written statement, a provincial spokesperson said the Manitoba government has been working closely with the city to address the order to vacate the apartments.

“The department of families, and (its) partners, have been actively communicating with and supporting residents of the Adanac in order to facilitate a smooth transition to (alternative) housing,” the statement said.

The province said its reception centre included officials from Manitoba Housing, employment and income assistance and the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority, who will help the residents connect with benefits and find alternative places to stay.

» Winnipeg Free Press