Two organizations defending the rights of Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve tenants who are victims of repossession denounce the “lies” of the borough, which would have offered them “no concrete support” to help them relocate. However, he claims to do everything in his power to help them.
The BAILS Committee and Entraide Logement have until July 1 to find new premises, the four-storey building in which they currently occupy commercial space on Ontario Street East having been bought by a private college in Toronto, reported The duty at the beginning of the month. This news had made the political world react. The borough then assured that a borough employee has been “in contact” with these two tenant defense groups “since March” to help them in their efforts to relocate.
“Right now, we are doing another turn of the wheel with them to support them in finding premises that suit them. We want to preserve the neighborhood’s popular vocation, with a strong and united social fabric,” Hochelaga District Councilor Éric Alan Caldwell told us in writing.
The remarks of the elected representative of Projet Montréal caused the two organizations for the defense of tenants’ rights to react, which in the last few days sent an open letter to the To have towhich is intended to be “a response to the City’s lie”.
“We got in touch with someone from the borough in mid-January,” said Marine G. Armengaud, a community organizer with the BAILS Committee, in an interview on Wednesday. An official then discussed with one of his colleagues, she admits. However, since then, “we have really had no other contact with the borough or the city-center”, deplores Ms. Armengaud, who claims to have had “no support” from the borough to help the two community groups to relocate. .
“They put housing a lot in their discourse, but they don’t do much,” added the community organizer, who wonders if the borough has tried in its communications to the To have to “to get rid of not doing much to help us”. “We wanted to know why there was no concern,” adds the coordinator of Entraide Logement, Guillaume Dostaler.
Rare premises
At the borough, it is assured that steps have been taken to help the two organizations find new premises. However, these took place in the shadows, without informing the main parties concerned, since this research has not yet been fruitful to date, it is said. The borough specifies that none of the premises in its charge are currently vacant.
“We did not call the organizations back because we did not find premises that met their expectations, which does not mean that we did not make an effort”, indicates the mayor of Mercier– Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, Pierre Lessard-Blais, interviewed at To have to Wednesday evening. “We are talking about housing 12 employees […] We had found a room, but it was smaller than their requirements, ”adds the elected official.
The latter adds that the borough frequently receives requests from community groups asking the borough to offer them a place to stay. However, “all our premises are full” and several buildings in the borough require major renovations, sighs Mr. Lessard-Blais. “The reality is that we have dozens of organizations that are housed for free […] We would like to do more, but our financial capacity is limited. »
The two organizations have for their part determined two potential premises for accommodation and plan to decide in the coming days on which one they will rent. “But neither is ideal,” sighs Marine G. Armengaud. One of them is not accessible to people with reduced mobility and the other “is really expensive and a little out of the way” compared to the center of the Hochelaga-Maisonneuve district. And in both cases, “we can very well be ousted next year or in the years to come”, adds the one who hopes that these two organizations will be able to become owners of their own commercial premises.