1st-of-its-kind anti-renoviction bylaw taking shape in Hamilton, as city looks to keep tenants housed

Hamilton is looking at new rules designed to stop renovictions — the first bylaw of its kind in Ontario, staff say. 

The proposal comes as the city has seen a 983 per cent increase in the number of renoviction notices, N13s, issued to tenants between 2017 and 2022, said Monica Ciriello, director of licensing and bylaw enforcement, at a committee meeting Thursday. The annual number jumped to 130 from 12 in that time, according to the city.

"This bylaw seeks to halt bad-faith evictions in the short-term," she said. 

While the bylaw is similar to one in New Westminister, B.C., staff took a "made in Hamilton" approach to ensure it fits within Ontario's legislation governing municipalities. Aside from New Westminister, no other Canadian city has an anti-renoviction bylaw, according to staff. 

The bylaw could help tenants like Jennifer McGrath.

McGrath pays $661 for her downtown Hamilton apartment she's lived in over 20 years. In recent years, her landlord stopped doing repairs to her unit or any pest control to try to push her out, she told CBC Hamilton. 

Last month she received an N13 notice of eviction, which she said she plans to fight at the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB). 

"I just say to myself, 'I'm not going to take this lying down,'" said McGrath. "This is my home." 

McGrath, a member of the tenant advocacy group ACORN, said she supports the city's proposed bylaw because it will help people like her stay in their homes, or at least return once the renovations are done.  

How the anti-renoviction bylaw would work

How it would work is landlords looking to evict tenants to complete renovations would have to first get a licence from the city, according to the proposed bylaw. To get the licence, they'd need to provide proof from a professional engineer that the renovations are so extensive, tenants must leave their units for the work to be done.

If the city gives the landlord the green light, it would have to provide tenants with the opportunity to rent another unit close by and at no more than 15 per cent their current rate. However, if landlords can't find a comparable unit, they could notify the city — and it is unclear what happens next.

ACORN's Damien Ash urged the committee to strengthen the bylaw by increasing fines and ensuring residents will be provided with other accommodations and allowed to move back into their units once the work is complete.

While councillors applauded city staff for developing the bylaw, they deferred their decision to October.

"I do believe we are very close to getting to a final version," said Coun. Nrinder Nann (Ward 3). "The reason for the deferral is fundamentally about working constructively with staff and bringing the final changes to close the gap." 

Council approves other tenant protections

The anti-renoviction bylaw was one of several programs and changes pitched by staff on Thursday to better protect tenants. The committee also approved the safe apartment buildings bylaw to spur landlords to maintain their properties so renovictions aren't necessary in the long-term.

Council gave final approval for the safe apartment buildings bylaw Friday.

To enforce the bylaws, staff are looking to create an entirely new housing division and hire over 30 full-time employees, said Jason Thorne, general manager of planning.

"This is a very big move for the city," Thorne said. "It is not often we are in front of you asking to create a new section. But I think that's what's needed to be successful."

The committee also approved updates to the vital services bylaw to prevent months-long service utility disruptions like what happened at 1083 Main St. E, where tenants went without water for nearly three months. 

The bylaw now clearly allows the city to quickly hire its own contractors to do extensive repairs to restore vital services, and then peg the expense onto the landlord's property tax bill, Ciriello said.

The city will also be creating a tenant defence program through the Hamilton Community Legal Clinic to help 200 tenants a year fight evictions and above guideline rent increases at the LTB, said a staff report. Currently, the city has a fund that provides tenants with financial support to hire their own legal representation. 

Council will discuss how it will finance all approved housing and shelter programs at a meeting this fall.