Housing neglected by the owner | Lachine tries to restore heating and hot water

The Lachine borough is taking action to ensure the return of hot water and heating to residents of a building that has been without it for more than seven weeks.

Tenants of a building located on Ivan-Franko Street have not had contact with their owners for months, as recently reported The Press and other media. Following the publication of several reports, the borough sent a plumber to the site to ensure the return of hot water and heating. An electrician will also be deployed.

Also read “Seven weeks without heating or hot water”

One of the building’s two furnaces has been repaired, and the borough is trying to ensure the proper functioning of the second, which would allow a return to normal.

“Right now, tenants have access to lukewarm water,” explains Lachine Mayor Maja Vodanovic. Both furnaces will need to be working so they can have heat and hot water. »

The district took the liberty of intervening in the building, as all its notices sent to the owner, Thi Lan Nguyen, remained unanswered. “People are cold. There are families who have to manage low temperatures with babies. We really didn’t want to wait before acting,” explains M.^me Vodanovic.

The borough intends to take advantage of a legal hypothec on the building, which would allow it to be reimbursed for the work if the building is sold. He wants to ensure that the bill is not passed on to citizens.

“We would like the building to be purchased by a new owner, who would take better care of the tenants,” wishes the mayor of Lachine.

The building has 47 units, almost half of which are vacant. During a visit, firefighters discovered that it had several deficiencies, such as the absence of smoke detectors in several apartments and unusable elevators.

Since 2013, 174 files have been opened at the administrative housing court (TAL) concerning the Thi Lan Nguyen building. The main interested party did not respond to interview requests from The Press.