Possible By-Laws Violated by Landlord (By-Law #2005-100)
On Tuesday, March 14, 2006, while the City of Kingston By-Law Enforcement Officer was in my apartment to perform a temperature reading, I showed him my printed copy of the most recent City of Kingston Property Standards By-Law (By-Law No. 2005-100). I explained to him that I had printed it directly from the City of Kingston website and he confirmed that it was indeed the most recent version.
I began to go through it, showing to him all of the areas that I had highlighted in green highlighter, where it appeared that Homestead Land Holdings Limited was in potential violation of some of these by-laws.
Doors and Windows
4.9 All exterior openings of buildings shall be fitted with doors or windows or other suitable means to prevent entrance of wind or rain into the building.
I explained to the officer, and had reported to him previously, that my windows were very drafty, there was not even any paint on the inside wooden frame, and that water was leaking in beneath the window. I have 35 mm photographs and VHS/8 mm original camcorder video of the mould/mildew that was growing directly beneath my windows.
4.10 Windows, exterior doors, and basement or cellar hatchways shall be maintained in good repair.
Obviously, my windows were in a most deplorable state of repair. When they were eventually replaced, the officer issued a verbal order to Homestead to replace all of my windows first, when they began to replace windows in June 2005!
4.11 Rotted or damaged doors, door frames, window frames, sashes and casings, weather-stripping, broken glass and defective door and window hardware shall be repaired and/or replaced, and maintained and protected from the elements and against decay and rust by application of a weather coating material such as paint or other protective materials.
Again, I have 35 mm photographs, as well as original 8 mm camcorder cassette and VHS copy which proves the total state of disrepair that all of my windows were in. I personally showed these to the officer.
Exterior Walls
4.14 Exterior walls of buildings and their components including soffit and fascia shall be maintained so as to prevent their deterioration due to weather and insects and shall be so maintained by painting, restoring, or repairing the walls coping or flashing and by waterproofing of joints.
The mould damage that occurred in my master bedroom in December of 2004 was a direct result of standing water on the roof being blown under the flashing and leaking directly into my room. This was confirmed by Williams Brothers Restoration, who finally inspected the roof in January of 2005, after the mould returned. The then building superintendent, Bill Gilbert prior to this, repeatedly kept trying to tell me that the mould was a result of condensation within the apartment. It was he who then personally told me, that which was reported to him by the roofing contractor, that water was blowing under the flashing and subsequently leaking into my apartment.
Pest Prevention
4.26 Buildings shall be kept free of rodents, vermin and insects at all times.
I personally had complained to the then superintendent Bill Gilbert numerous times that I had an infestation of ladybugs, spiders, houseflies, and earwigs. He personally told me each time that Homestead Land Holdings would do nothing about it, more specifically any insect/bug that ate other insects/bugs. This I found out from a subsequent super was totally bogus. He had refused to do anything about it, because I was the one who made the complaint. I have photographs and videos of the many dead houseflies trapped between both panes in my windows, especially the window in the second bedroom!!!
Roofs
4.28 The roof of every building shall be structurally sound, weatherproof and free of loose or unsecured objects and materials and excessive accumulations of ice and snow.
This was not the case in Decemer of 2004, when water leaked under the flashing, into my master bedroom, subsequently causing personal property damage to my clothing, bedding, etc. in excess of $6,222! Homestead Land Holdings has flat out refused to compensate even one single penny for all of the personal property of mine, which was totally destroyed by the mould directly resulting from that roof leak!!!
Stairs, Porches and Balconies
4.31 Inside and outside stairs, porches, balconies and landings shall be maintained so as to be free of holes, cracks and other defects.
I challenge anyone to enter the stairwell at the basement level of this building, closest to the elevator. You will immediately see cracks in the concrete.
Structural Soundness
4.37 Materials which have been damaged or show evidence of rot or other deterioration shall be repaired or replaced.
I personally complained, through the proper channels (superintendents) about the deplorable condition of my windows. I can also personally substantiate the condition, before they were finally replaced on June 29, 2005, with 35 mm photographs and original 8 mm cancorder cassette/VHS videos.
Dors, Windows, and Skylights
5.9 Windows, skylights, doors and basement or cellar hatchways shall be maintained in good repair, weather tight and reasonably draught-free. Maintenance includes painting, replacing damaged doors, door frames and their components, window frames, sashes and casing, replacing non-serviceable hardware, weathre-stripping and re-glazing.
Again, before the windows were finally replaced in my unit in June of 2005, I have 35 mm photographs and original 8 mm camcorder cassette/VHS video proof of the deplorable condition of each window.
5.14 All windows and skylights in a dwelling unit that are capable of being opened shall be fitted and equipped with screens that are maintained in good repair and free from defects and missing components.
Again, I have 35 mm photographs and original 8 mm camcorder cassette/VHS video proof of the deplorable condition my screens were in. I am willing to show this to anyone who wishes to view it.
Garbage Disposal
5.28 Every dwelling and eery dwelling unit with the dwelling shall have such receptacles as may be necessary to contain all garbage and rubbish.
There are dumpsters outside the building.
5.29 Receptacles shall be:
5.29.1 Constructed of a watertight material;
5.29.2 constructed to prevent the entry of rodents;
5.29.3 provided with a tight fitting cover,which shall be kept closed at all times excent when garbage is being placed therein;
At the best of times, the plastic garbage container, which is located just outside the wooden structure where tenants dispose of their garbage bags some times does not have the cover placed on it, or if it is, some times it is loosely placed on top of it. Also, some times the doors to these dumpsters are left open. I have reported this to the rental office personally.
Heating and Heating System
5.41 Every dwelling unit shall be provided with a heating system capable of maintaining a temperature of 21.1 degrees C (70 degrees F)
5.43 Room temperature shall be determined at any point in the room.
When the property standards officer and the heating contractor (employee of Homestead) took temperature readings in my unit, they always took the readings in the centre of the room or very near the centre of the room, and never close to the floor where it was coldest or near the windows where it was also coldest. WHY THEN DOES 5.43 IMMEDIATELY ABOVE SPECIFICALLY STATE THAT ROOM TEMPERATURE SHALL BE DETERMINED AT ANY POINT IN THE ROOM IF THIS IS NOT PUT INTO PRACTICE????? For most of February 2006 and until the day after my Housing Tribunal Hearing on March 15, 2006, I reported repeatedly to Homstead Land Holdings that there was absolutely no heat emanating from my living room radiator, the largest radiator in the whole apartment. This was in spite of the fact that the pipes leading to the rad were hot. I was personally told by the heating contractor, who replaced Therrien, that it was too late in the season to repair it. This was a day or so prior to the March 15, 2006 hearing. Yet, at approximately 6:00 a.m. on the morning of Friday, March 17, I looked through my living room window when I heard the recycling truck on the property. I was shocked to find that there was finally heat emanating from this rad. This leads me to the next paragraph:
5.44 Every building or part of a building which is rented or leased as dwelling or lving accommodation and which, as between the tenant or lessee and the landlord, is normally heated by or at the expense of the landlord shall, between the 15th day of September in each year and the 1st day of June of the following year, be provided with adequate and suitable heat by or at the expense of the landlord; and for the purposes of this by-law "adequate and suitable heat" means that the minimum tempreature of the air in the accommodationwhich is available to the tenant or lessee is 21.1 degrees C (70 degrees F).
I reiterate from above that absolutely no heat emanated from my living room radiator for nearly, if not, the whole month of February of 2006 and I did not feel heat emanate from this rad until the morning of Friday, March 17, 2006 at about 6:00 a.m. As of the evening of Wednesday, March 15, hours after I returned from the Housing Tribunal Hearing, there was no heat emanating from that radiator. I personally can attest to this fact.
Ventilation
5.70 Every habitable room except living rooms and dining rooms shall have an opening or openings for ventilation providing an unobstructed free-flow area of at least 0.28 square meters (3 square feet) oran approved system of mechanical ventilation such that the air is changed once every hour.
It was not until sometime in 2000, when Elsie Davis was the super in the building, that a huge fan was finally fitted on the roof, to the venting system in the building. To this day, this fan is only turned on a various times of the day and is not continually on. There are no fans provided in the units. The air is obviously not changed once every hour, especially considering the fan is not even turned on for the entire 24 hours of the day! It is first turned on at 6 a.m. daily. and off during the overnight hours.
5.72 Where an opening is used for ventilation and it not permanently protected by a window or door so as to exclude rodents, vermin and insects it shall be:
5.72.1 adequately screened with durable material; and
5.72.2 otherwise protected so as to effectively prevent the entry of rodents, vermin and insects.
In the tiny vents in both my kitchen and bathroom, to which I have already stated the roof fan is not turned on for many hours of the day, there is no screen of any kind over either of these vents!
5.73 Any openings for natural ventilation shall be protected with insect screen of corrosion-resistant material.
5.74 Every bathroom or toilet room shall have an opening or openings for ventilation providing an unobstructed free-flow area of at least 0.09 square metres (1 square foot), or an equivalent such as an electric fan and a duct which shall terminate outside, shall be provided,installed and maintained.
I stated above that the fan on the roof of the building is not operating 24 hours per day. It is first turned on, by timer, at 6:00 a.m. each morning, and is turned off and on through the day at other times, also set by a timer.
Walls, Ceilings and Floors
5.79 Where necessary, interior walls shall have baseboards that shall be maintained in good repair and tight fitting so as to prevent the accumulation of dust and garbage.
When the disintegrating asbestos floor tiles were finally replaced in 2005 (I kept a couple of samples of these, just in case!), caulking was not done along the baseboards in the kitchen, living room/dining room, the hallway (not by doors and door frames) and no caulking in the bathroom in particular behind the toilet. Caulking was only done by the bathtub.
I began to go through it, showing to him all of the areas that I had highlighted in green highlighter, where it appeared that Homestead Land Holdings Limited was in potential violation of some of these by-laws.
Doors and Windows
4.9 All exterior openings of buildings shall be fitted with doors or windows or other suitable means to prevent entrance of wind or rain into the building.
I explained to the officer, and had reported to him previously, that my windows were very drafty, there was not even any paint on the inside wooden frame, and that water was leaking in beneath the window. I have 35 mm photographs and VHS/8 mm original camcorder video of the mould/mildew that was growing directly beneath my windows.
4.10 Windows, exterior doors, and basement or cellar hatchways shall be maintained in good repair.
Obviously, my windows were in a most deplorable state of repair. When they were eventually replaced, the officer issued a verbal order to Homestead to replace all of my windows first, when they began to replace windows in June 2005!
4.11 Rotted or damaged doors, door frames, window frames, sashes and casings, weather-stripping, broken glass and defective door and window hardware shall be repaired and/or replaced, and maintained and protected from the elements and against decay and rust by application of a weather coating material such as paint or other protective materials.
Again, I have 35 mm photographs, as well as original 8 mm camcorder cassette and VHS copy which proves the total state of disrepair that all of my windows were in. I personally showed these to the officer.
Exterior Walls
4.14 Exterior walls of buildings and their components including soffit and fascia shall be maintained so as to prevent their deterioration due to weather and insects and shall be so maintained by painting, restoring, or repairing the walls coping or flashing and by waterproofing of joints.
The mould damage that occurred in my master bedroom in December of 2004 was a direct result of standing water on the roof being blown under the flashing and leaking directly into my room. This was confirmed by Williams Brothers Restoration, who finally inspected the roof in January of 2005, after the mould returned. The then building superintendent, Bill Gilbert prior to this, repeatedly kept trying to tell me that the mould was a result of condensation within the apartment. It was he who then personally told me, that which was reported to him by the roofing contractor, that water was blowing under the flashing and subsequently leaking into my apartment.
Pest Prevention
4.26 Buildings shall be kept free of rodents, vermin and insects at all times.
I personally had complained to the then superintendent Bill Gilbert numerous times that I had an infestation of ladybugs, spiders, houseflies, and earwigs. He personally told me each time that Homestead Land Holdings would do nothing about it, more specifically any insect/bug that ate other insects/bugs. This I found out from a subsequent super was totally bogus. He had refused to do anything about it, because I was the one who made the complaint. I have photographs and videos of the many dead houseflies trapped between both panes in my windows, especially the window in the second bedroom!!!
Roofs
4.28 The roof of every building shall be structurally sound, weatherproof and free of loose or unsecured objects and materials and excessive accumulations of ice and snow.
This was not the case in Decemer of 2004, when water leaked under the flashing, into my master bedroom, subsequently causing personal property damage to my clothing, bedding, etc. in excess of $6,222! Homestead Land Holdings has flat out refused to compensate even one single penny for all of the personal property of mine, which was totally destroyed by the mould directly resulting from that roof leak!!!
Stairs, Porches and Balconies
4.31 Inside and outside stairs, porches, balconies and landings shall be maintained so as to be free of holes, cracks and other defects.
I challenge anyone to enter the stairwell at the basement level of this building, closest to the elevator. You will immediately see cracks in the concrete.
Structural Soundness
4.37 Materials which have been damaged or show evidence of rot or other deterioration shall be repaired or replaced.
I personally complained, through the proper channels (superintendents) about the deplorable condition of my windows. I can also personally substantiate the condition, before they were finally replaced on June 29, 2005, with 35 mm photographs and original 8 mm cancorder cassette/VHS videos.
Dors, Windows, and Skylights
5.9 Windows, skylights, doors and basement or cellar hatchways shall be maintained in good repair, weather tight and reasonably draught-free. Maintenance includes painting, replacing damaged doors, door frames and their components, window frames, sashes and casing, replacing non-serviceable hardware, weathre-stripping and re-glazing.
Again, before the windows were finally replaced in my unit in June of 2005, I have 35 mm photographs and original 8 mm camcorder cassette/VHS video proof of the deplorable condition of each window.
5.14 All windows and skylights in a dwelling unit that are capable of being opened shall be fitted and equipped with screens that are maintained in good repair and free from defects and missing components.
Again, I have 35 mm photographs and original 8 mm camcorder cassette/VHS video proof of the deplorable condition my screens were in. I am willing to show this to anyone who wishes to view it.
Garbage Disposal
5.28 Every dwelling and eery dwelling unit with the dwelling shall have such receptacles as may be necessary to contain all garbage and rubbish.
There are dumpsters outside the building.
5.29 Receptacles shall be:
5.29.1 Constructed of a watertight material;
5.29.2 constructed to prevent the entry of rodents;
5.29.3 provided with a tight fitting cover,which shall be kept closed at all times excent when garbage is being placed therein;
At the best of times, the plastic garbage container, which is located just outside the wooden structure where tenants dispose of their garbage bags some times does not have the cover placed on it, or if it is, some times it is loosely placed on top of it. Also, some times the doors to these dumpsters are left open. I have reported this to the rental office personally.
Heating and Heating System
5.41 Every dwelling unit shall be provided with a heating system capable of maintaining a temperature of 21.1 degrees C (70 degrees F)
5.43 Room temperature shall be determined at any point in the room.
When the property standards officer and the heating contractor (employee of Homestead) took temperature readings in my unit, they always took the readings in the centre of the room or very near the centre of the room, and never close to the floor where it was coldest or near the windows where it was also coldest. WHY THEN DOES 5.43 IMMEDIATELY ABOVE SPECIFICALLY STATE THAT ROOM TEMPERATURE SHALL BE DETERMINED AT ANY POINT IN THE ROOM IF THIS IS NOT PUT INTO PRACTICE????? For most of February 2006 and until the day after my Housing Tribunal Hearing on March 15, 2006, I reported repeatedly to Homstead Land Holdings that there was absolutely no heat emanating from my living room radiator, the largest radiator in the whole apartment. This was in spite of the fact that the pipes leading to the rad were hot. I was personally told by the heating contractor, who replaced Therrien, that it was too late in the season to repair it. This was a day or so prior to the March 15, 2006 hearing. Yet, at approximately 6:00 a.m. on the morning of Friday, March 17, I looked through my living room window when I heard the recycling truck on the property. I was shocked to find that there was finally heat emanating from this rad. This leads me to the next paragraph:
5.44 Every building or part of a building which is rented or leased as dwelling or lving accommodation and which, as between the tenant or lessee and the landlord, is normally heated by or at the expense of the landlord shall, between the 15th day of September in each year and the 1st day of June of the following year, be provided with adequate and suitable heat by or at the expense of the landlord; and for the purposes of this by-law "adequate and suitable heat" means that the minimum tempreature of the air in the accommodationwhich is available to the tenant or lessee is 21.1 degrees C (70 degrees F).
I reiterate from above that absolutely no heat emanated from my living room radiator for nearly, if not, the whole month of February of 2006 and I did not feel heat emanate from this rad until the morning of Friday, March 17, 2006 at about 6:00 a.m. As of the evening of Wednesday, March 15, hours after I returned from the Housing Tribunal Hearing, there was no heat emanating from that radiator. I personally can attest to this fact.
Ventilation
5.70 Every habitable room except living rooms and dining rooms shall have an opening or openings for ventilation providing an unobstructed free-flow area of at least 0.28 square meters (3 square feet) oran approved system of mechanical ventilation such that the air is changed once every hour.
It was not until sometime in 2000, when Elsie Davis was the super in the building, that a huge fan was finally fitted on the roof, to the venting system in the building. To this day, this fan is only turned on a various times of the day and is not continually on. There are no fans provided in the units. The air is obviously not changed once every hour, especially considering the fan is not even turned on for the entire 24 hours of the day! It is first turned on at 6 a.m. daily. and off during the overnight hours.
5.72 Where an opening is used for ventilation and it not permanently protected by a window or door so as to exclude rodents, vermin and insects it shall be:
5.72.1 adequately screened with durable material; and
5.72.2 otherwise protected so as to effectively prevent the entry of rodents, vermin and insects.
In the tiny vents in both my kitchen and bathroom, to which I have already stated the roof fan is not turned on for many hours of the day, there is no screen of any kind over either of these vents!
5.73 Any openings for natural ventilation shall be protected with insect screen of corrosion-resistant material.
5.74 Every bathroom or toilet room shall have an opening or openings for ventilation providing an unobstructed free-flow area of at least 0.09 square metres (1 square foot), or an equivalent such as an electric fan and a duct which shall terminate outside, shall be provided,installed and maintained.
I stated above that the fan on the roof of the building is not operating 24 hours per day. It is first turned on, by timer, at 6:00 a.m. each morning, and is turned off and on through the day at other times, also set by a timer.
Walls, Ceilings and Floors
5.79 Where necessary, interior walls shall have baseboards that shall be maintained in good repair and tight fitting so as to prevent the accumulation of dust and garbage.
When the disintegrating asbestos floor tiles were finally replaced in 2005 (I kept a couple of samples of these, just in case!), caulking was not done along the baseboards in the kitchen, living room/dining room, the hallway (not by doors and door frames) and no caulking in the bathroom in particular behind the toilet. Caulking was only done by the bathtub.
posted by Kitten @ 10:26 a.m.
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