Tenants won renoviction dispute prior to Sandy Hill fire

Two tenants of a Sandy Hill townhome have lost most of what they own after escaping a fire early Thursday morning.

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Fire investigators were on scene Friday searching for the cause of the fire, which destroyed the property on Osgoode Street.

A man was recued from one of the units and taken to hospital for smoke inhalation. He has since been released. The other tenant, a woman, was able to escape when the fire broke out.

The fire comes after the tenants were fighting eviction and had recently won their case to be given another affordable unit.

"Luckily they had somewhere to go because they already negotiated with the landlord to move into a renovated unit," said tenant organizer, Sloane Mulligan.

Four years ago, the landlord issued eviction notices in order to upgrade the property and charge a higher rent.

"We offered the tenants a generous and flexible relocation package which vastly exceeded what the law required in such cases, and included rent compensation plus moving service assistance," read a statement by Smart Living Properties to CTV News.

"In some cases, we provided home finding services and a furnishing allowance in addition to the relocation compensation."

A townhome was destroyed after a fire in Sandy Hill. (Katelyn Wilson/CTV News Ottawa)Although tenants were offered money and help to find a new place to live, many wanted to stay and fight instead.

"All of the organizing was in an effort to get the landlord to directly engage and negotiate with them," said Mulligan.

Some of the tenants had been living in the rooming houses for upwards of 30 years and were low-income.

On Dec, 22, an agreement was finalized to allow the two tenants to move into a renovated unit at the same price between $400 and $600 a month.

"It’s the first time that we know of that tenants have fought against their renoviction successfully," said Mulligan.

"Potentially it would have legal ramifications as well, positive ones, but ideally tenants are learning the skills of organizing and the possibilities of organizing."

According to a 2021 property inspection report commissioned by the tenants, much of the building was in disrepair, including several safety issues.

Smart Living Properties says the building had been in a state of disrepair long before it become involved with the property and that it was not possible to carry out work while the tenants lived there.

One of the tenants who wished not to be identified told CTV News she lived with more than a dozen rats.

Ottawa firefighters battle a fire on Sweetland Avenue in Sandy Hill on Thursday morning. One occupant was rescued from the building. (Jim O'Grady/CTV News Ottawa)

Both of the tenants were in the process of moving to the new units when the fire broke out.

"It really sets the standard that in favour of tenants who are deserving of a nice place to live because they pay rent," said Mulligan

Smart Living Properties also told CTV News that they prioritize the safety and well-being of tenants.

"The property is fully equipped with necessary safety and security systems, and our team is waiting for the power to be restored so we can retrieve available video from the time leading up to the incident to share with the authorities," Smart Living Properties said.