The Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) is calling on the Doug Ford government to designate air conditioning as a vital service for renters in the province.
In a statement issued on Fridaythe OHRC called for the implementation of a provincial maximum temperature and the ability to access air conditioning for all tenants under Residential Tenancy Act (RTA) regulations
“Extreme heat caused by climate change is killing people… and will continue to get worse,” the group said in its statement. “A human rights-based approach to air conditioning/refrigeration is required to ensure that all Ontarians have affordable, adequate and safe housing.”
Current RTA regulations list heat as a vital service and require Ontario tenants to have access to heat services from September 1 to June 15 each year.
While housing with central air conditioning systems, such as long-term care homes or other multi-unit housing, may be required by municipal regulations to maintain a maximum temperature of 26 C between June and September, there is nothing set out in the RTA requiring that all Ontarians Tenants be allowed access to air conditioning during the summer months.
TENANTS IN CASE OF EVICTION DUE TO AIR CONDITIONING
Dozens of renters facing eviction for having an air conditioning unit in their apartment gathered outside 130 Jameson Ave. on Tuesday, June 28. (Parkdale Organize/Twitter photo)Roughly half a million Torontonians live in condominiums or apartments without air conditioning, and recently some of those tenants have faced eviction for trying to improve their conditions.
In June, tenants of a Parkdale apartment located at 130 Jameson Avenue received eviction notices for allegedly having air conditioning units in their apartments and refusing to pay more to cover running costs.
Speaking to CP24 in June, one of the tenants, Kiki Jones, said they had been resorting to cold showers, avoiding physical activity, keeping the blinds drawn and running electric fans in an effort to stay cool with the air conditioning.
“Once you hit a certain point of heat, it becomes very difficult to take care of yourself,” Jones said.
After tenants began installing their own air conditioning units, approximately 30 households in the building received N5 notices asking them to vacate their apartments, pay a monthly fee to offset higher hydroelectric costs associated with running the units. or pay for hydropower directly through sub-metering.
Another longtime tenant, Shelly Dunphy, called the whole thing “a cash grab.”
Parkdale Legal Clinic and MPP Bhutila Karpoche, who represents High Park-Parkdale, met with tenants and encouraged them not to move and instead organize as a group. Karpoche said he believes the eviction notices were issued in hopes of raising rents once the units are vacant.
As of August, tenants were still fighting the N5 notices.
With archives from The Canadian Press and Joanna Lavoie of CP24.