Editor’s note: If the province sets up minimum standards for rentals, as Port Moody is calling for (below), it will have an impact on our area. According to the 2021 census, 75 of Cortes Island’s 555 occupied dwellings were in need of major repairs. This was also true of 105 of the 1330 homes in Area C. A significant percentage of these buildings would have been rentals. The Collecting Stories of Where You Are Survey, carried out in both areas the following year, includes responses from people renting units that did not have indoor plumbing, water or ‘sufficient and affordable heating.’
By Patrick Penner, Tri-Cities Dispatch, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Although Port Moody is developing its own bylaw to direct maintenance standards for rental units, city council is asking the provincial government to set up and and enforce B.C.-wide standards.
Couns. Amy Lubik and Samantha Agrtarap introduced a resolution for debate at the Lower Mainland Local Government Association (LMLGA) and the Union of B.C. Municipalities conferences later this year. It was passed unanimously at Port Moody council on Feb. 13.
The resolution argues that minimum standards need to be set to ensure the health and safety of the province’s rental units, and the province is the only institution with the capacity to regulate the issue.
Continue reading Port Moody calls on province to set up and enforce rental maintenance standards across B.C.
