The last remaining tenants at Mountain Court, a Lynn Valley rental complex District of North Vancouver council approved for redevelopment in 2015, are preparing for their eviction.
But more than two-thirds of 66 families who lived there at the time of its rezoning have found new homes on the North Shore, according to a report to district council Monday night.
The rezoning of the aging but relatively affordable 75-unit rental complex proved highly controversial largely because of how the redevelopment would impact the tenants. And council is anticipating more “demovictions” as several more purpose-built rental complexes are up for redevelopment in Maplewood, Lynn Valley and Deep Cove.
Only 10 of Mountain Court’s 75 units will still be occupied as of May 1, with a deadline to move out by the end of May.
Those who were required to move for Polygon’s 246-strata and 75-rental unit project received two months of free rent (the Residential Tenancy Act requires one) and a bonus ranging from $20 to $40 for every month of residency, depending on how many years they’d lived at Mountain Court. They also received access to a “relocation liaison” to help them find alternate accommodations as well as the choice of first right of refusal to move into the new rental units on the site once they’re built or a discount for purchasing at another Polygon project.
In total, developer Polygon estimates the compensation will put up about $311,452 for the tenants, or an average of $4,310 for each eligible family. The 12 tenants who moved into the complex after Polygon purchased the property and announced their plans to demolish it received about $2,250 in compensation each.
Of those who have already moved out, 71 per cent remained on the North Shore, according to a district staff report. Twenty-five signed up for the wait-list for the new building and one took advantage of the discount Polygon was offering for another one of their condos in Lynn Valley.
In November 2016 the district adopted an official residential tenant relocation assistance policy that includes many of the incentives Polygon included in their negotiations with the district. The City of North Vancouver also has created a tenant assistance policy for demovictions.
But, even with compensation plans in place, eviction for redevelopment is still a source of great heartache, Coun. Lisa Muri pointed out.
“It’s a huge, huge deal to have to move because, in many cases, their kids have to go to a new school, they’re not as close to their soccer teams and baseball teams and the group of people they grew up with. Moving costs a fortune,” she said.
Hardest hit are tenants with pets who find their options even more limited, Muri added, asking staff to report back on the legality of banning pets from rental units, and whether the district could create its own laws.
One of the last 10 holdouts at Mountain Court is Terry Dial, who has lived there for roughly 23 years. Eventually he found a one-bedroom apartment on Lonsdale, “older than Methuselah,” about one-third the size of his current home and with none of the amenities for $1,080 a month.
“The prices of real estate out there is just outrageous,” he said. “It’s just bare bones but I have no choice, really.”
The ordeal has been highly stressful, Dial said. To make the move feasible, he’s had to part ways with many of his belongings, including family mementos he’s held onto since childhood. “Seventy years of accumulation and it’s just all toast. It’s all garbage. It’s memories – until my memory goes,” he added with a laugh.
Dial said he’s kept in touch with a number of his old neighbours and they too have found their new homes either too expensive or not to their liking.
Council failed Mountain Court’s residents, Dial added.
“All they care about is the millions of dollars they’re getting in permits and fees and everything. They don’t care about people. It’s all about money,” he said.
