Proposed Ontario Housing Bill Concerns Students

Lkle: f-P^ upset UBC's administration fails Sly and cool—some would A real estate marketing tc^meet OCP commitment disagree, though—spy plan tells students who to on time writes a book be, how to act finding housing since 1982 For man^l!!!^^0"^ mefo kickNl back in a cabin somewhere up the coast. | For Hoang andhis fifteen housemates, however. by Todd Silver built approximately 650,000 homes throughout the country. According to Tom Durning of the HOANG LIVES IN A THE BASEMENT SUITE WITH FOUR FRIENDS. HIS Tenants Rights Action Coalition this allowed those bedroom is only a little bigger than a walk-in closet. Hoang's who "fell through the cracks", such as the aged four roomies share the other two bedrooms. and disabled, to find affordable housing. But Hoang isn't complaining. "Its really nice for a basement But the federal government ended all involve suite, that's for sure. There is a kitchen, bathroom, two and a half ment in housing in 1993. bedrooms and we have laundry facilities and bright lights and Approximately 12,000 people have their everything. Like big windows and stuff like that" names on the waiting list to get into BC Housing. ill Like thousands of UBC students who rent around Vancouver, Those within the program pay thirty per cent of Hoang and his roommates pay top dollar for a tiny, and techni their income towards rent with the provincial gov cally illegal apartment They rent in a city where demand far out ernment kicking in the rest *' *•«%* strips supply. And for $ 1100 rent, they get only a few, shaky ten The program, however, is focused only on ants rights. families, the elderly, and disabled who have mod Zoe Stronge, manager ofthe AMS-run Rentsline, is feeling the erate to low incomes. Students are not allowed to pressure of students who need places to live. apply. BRIAN BAKER TRUNC HOANG, AND ANDREW BROOKE (clockwise) on "For every landlord we have listing a place, there are about makeshift bu nkbeds. RICHARD LAM PHOTO one hundred students looking," she says. Many of those students LIKE MANY STUDENTS LIVING IN SECONDARY call the telephone service from out of town and see their new suites, Hoang knows the woes of dealing with unreasonable Fed up with getting the runaround, the roommates decid place when they show up to move in. landlords. ed to take their landlord to arbitration. Most two bedroom suites on Rentsline list between $1000 When they moved out last spring, then former landlord Tenants living in illegal suites do not enjoy the same and $1200 per month. Rooms in shared suites go for between kept $250 of their damage deposit rights as those living in legal suites. Such rights include not $300 and $550. "It was just a random number," said Hoang. "All year he only the maintenance of basic standards, but also written "And even the most expensive listings are usually taken after was screwing us around. During the year our furnace broke notice of any rent increase three months before it is imple a few weeks," says Stronge. down six times. Jane's bedroom, [one of Hoang's room mented. mates], she had fungus growing in it and she had to move out After two hearings, Hoang and his roommates won. "We WHEN LOOKING FOR MORE AFFORDABLE ACCOMMODATIONS, for a month," Hoang says. "We told him about it in November got reimbursed for eveiything," says Hoang. students can expect lithe help from their elected officials. and in the end he still decided, for some stupid reason, to They were among the lucky ones and one of the few that Following the Second World War the federal government keep $250 of ours." actually seek justice.• Proposed Ontario housing bill concerns students by Christina Varga lot," said Howard Tessler of the Federation of "Presently, fifty percent of units are being Tenant rights advocates say the new legisla The Varsity Metro Tenants' Association. rented at less than the legal maximum. If land tion might also make it harder for students, as TORONTO (CUP)-Student tenants in Ontario "Vacancy decontrol encourages even good lords could get it [now] they would," said lower income earners, to find affordable hous are worried a proposed housing bill will let landlords to be bad landlords. If the landlord Dundas, pointing to Massachusetts as an exam ing because landlords will be able to legally landlords raise rent to any amount they think sees the same apartment down the street go for ple of successful rent decontrol laws. "The state deny a rental unit based on a person's income. the market can bear. $ 150 more per month, they will be tempted to of Massachusetts has phased rigid rent con The Ontario Human Rights Commission is The proposed legislation, Bill 96, is under get rid of [their] tenants so they can raise the trols out., and there is a huge increase in new presently making a ruling on whether this is going public hearings throughout the summer rent" rental units, and rents did not go up." (iiscrirninatory by law. and could become law as early as this fall. But Anne Dundas, an adviser to Al Leach, But research compiled by the Still, landlord advocacy groups say the gov Tenant advocacy groups say the new legis Ontario Municipal Affairs and Housing minis Massachusetts Tenants' Organization shows ernment has not gone far enough "I think the lation could mean students will have to pay ter, says the new legislation is designed to cre that evictions in the Boston Housing Court government should get out of rent control alto much higher rents with every move. ate more rental housing by giving landlords increased from 5,000 to 7,500 the year after gether," said Philip Dewan of the Fair Rental "Students are royally screwed under the more incentives to invest in rental buildings. rent control was eliminated and the average Policy Organization. "[But] we see this as a big new legislation because they move around a She says it will not result in sty-rocketing rents. rent in the city rose by fourteen percent. improvement "• 2 THE SUMMER UBYSSEY* TUESDAY, AUGUST 26, 1997 ^j^gmww orren Changes for SUB clubs FURNISHED ROOM room for by Sarah Galashan will be enlarged and the Varsity one. Private entrance and bath Outdoors Club has moved into room, refrigerator, large closet, At a cost of $35,000 the AMS is making renova a new office in the SUB base 2-burner hotplate. Very quiet, tions to the SUB basement to make more space ment near Arbutus & 25th. for AMS clubs. "We're jazzing (the club 733-2395. Banging hammers and the hum of electric area] up a little bit and provid saws are music to the ears ofthe Aquasoc and the ing some functional things for Varsity Outdoors club, which will benefit from the the club. A little larger club GAIN EXPERIENCE in all renovations. meeting room and a better stor aspects of journalism. Join the "[The clubs] are like 'wow this is the most age area for their wetsuits and Ubyssey, SUB Building, room amazing thing', they can't wait for clubs days. washdown area," said Michael 241 K. If you're too shy to come They're like totally psyched about it," said Jennie Kingsmill, AMS designer. in, phone 822-2301. Chen, AMS director of adniinistration. According to Kingsmill the IHM--MI-.1II-1 "Aquasoc brought forward these proposals renovations are still within bud and they were willing to put in money," said get, are almost on schedule and PLACE aAN AD with The Chen, who noted the club put about $ 15,000 into should finish without any prob Ubyssey, UBC's official student lhe renovations. "All the parties involved thought lems. He added the work is newspaper. Reach the biggest it was a really positive way to go to promote the being done with as little incon TAPE JOB: Cordie Slade topes up the drywall in the new Aquasoc concentration of 18-22 year club and also the Varsity Outdoor Club which is venience to others as possible. office. RICHARD LAM PHOTO olds in the lower mainland. being moved into a bigger and better location." The noise level and disturbance has been min first two days there was dust It's just something Phone 822-1654 or 822-6681. The area actually being renovated will be used imal, said Robbie Bousadda, the manager of you have to deal with." only for Aquasoc, a scuba diving and marine biol Snack Attack, an AMS food outlet next to the con "There's no other areas that we're thinking of ogy club. The room formerly shared by both clubs struction area. "The only bad thing was that in the doing major renovations to soon," Davies said.* Lack of funding forces one-week closure of VPL's by Sarah Galashan ees] they had the choice of taking wrestied between a one-week clo Robinson added that while no vacation as part of it...or they could sure for all libraries or the com one is happy about the closure, the Forget about hitting a Vancouver choose to take leave without pay, plete closure of one branch. The last week in August is traditionally Public Library for some back to and the majority are certainly tak Fraserview branch in East the slowest for Vancouver lib school studying this week. ing vacation," said Capes. "Part- Vancouver was originally a target raries. All 21 Vancouver Public Library time employees were laid off for for the penny pmching, but it got a It is unknown whether the clos- (VPL) branches will close the last that week so they in fact are not new lease on life after the board sure will direcdy affect UBC week of August to help make up for being paid." opted to make smaller cuts else libraries, but according to the Ann a $500,000 cut to the library sys In addition to the closure, high where.

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