December 24th, 2011
What’s this story about?
Huntington Hills was said to be “unfit” for habitation after the owner failed to comply with a couple of Alberta court orders to fix safety and health concerns.
The owners had two years of warnings after Alberta Health Services informed them there were serious health concerns with the building. One of the main concerns was asbestos.
What happened to the tenants?
This left many tenants living in Huntington Hills to scramble to find new places to live, even a day before they were to be evicted.
Many of the ninety tenants scrambling to find new housing were newcomers to Canada and seniors with low incomes.
Fortunately, before the deadline only three had found a new rental.
How did these tenants handle it?
Two tenants involved feel they are happy to home for the Christmas break. They are Melissa and Andrew Rayburn. Just days before being forced to move they and their two daughters managed to find a new rental within blocks of their Huntsville building.
According to Melissa: “It’s been really stressful but I guess I’m glad that we left because I don’t want to live in a place that could make my kids sick.” Melissa is six months pregnant and said “I’m really glad we’re out of there. We don’t need the hassle.”
Why didn’t the government work closely with the Huntington Hills owners to solve this before it came to this point?
That is something only the owners and the government know.
Tags: Alberta Health Services, evictions