Councillors rethink approach to scourge of vacant, fire-scorched buildings

On a half-block stretch of Maryland Street, there are two vacant buildings blighted by fire damage.

A city bylaw inspector checked out a two-storey house with burn marks above the front door Tuesday afternoon.

She’d heard there was another blaze on this part of the 600 block, the fourth at the property in just 10 months.

So she headed to the area to see if Sunday’s incident involved a house on her inspection list.

She was hoping it wasn’t this property because the owner has been working diligently with the bylaw enforcement team to ensure the home is being brought up to city standards.

She was relieved to find it wasn’t the property; it was another a few doors down, at 675 Maryland, where a man was cleaning up.

“It was all boarded up, and I guess they got in here somehow, and they tried to start another fire,” said Shawn, who didn’t want his last name used, as he cleared debris out of the property.

The inside was covered in soot and charred garbage; the smell of smoke lingered.

“We’re doing the best we can, but what can you do? We’d go to the extreme, we put up plywood, we made sure tons of screws were in it, but then you’ll see, the criminals, they bust it open, and they end up going in there anyways,” he said.

“We’re trying, you know what I mean? It’s not like we want to leave it open for other people just to re-damage it.”

On Tuesday, city council’s executive policy committee discussed a proposal that would suspend fines for property owners who make an effort to restore their buildings after a fire.

Coun. Evan Duncan wants vacant building fines suspended for owners who are “currently in a bona fide process of redevelopment” or receive municipal funding for that redevelopment.

Duncan (Charleswood-Tuxedo-Westwood) said there are owners with development permits who are being fined because the work is being done slowly or delayed for reasons beyond their control.

“The department isn’t going to lose any authority to enforce,” said Duncan.

“It’s just going to be on these projects that do have those development permits and that are moving, but the department is forced to enforce their policies that currently stand there, that see them give them fines.”

The motion asks the public service to report back in 90 days on possible amendments to the vacant buildings bylaw. It would require full council approval to move forward.

Should amendments be approved, they could start with property owners who have received municipal funding, he said.

“We don’t want to be penalizing these people and essentially taking tax dollars away from them and collecting it in fines,” he said. “That’s a bad look for us, as well.”

In the Daniel McIntyre ward, which includes 675 Maryland St., it’s not uncommon for vacant buildings to be hit by fire multiple times in less than a year, said area councillor Cindy Gilroy.

Property owners who try to redevelop buildings and work with the city are in the minority, she said.

She’d like to see a limit imposed on how long a house is allowed to stay vacant.

“We’re going to have to look, as a city, how we’re going to manage this,” she said.

“Quite frankly, we have increased the fees so much for these property owners, they get fined every time there’s a fire, every time that there’s police calls. The hope is that these escalate so much that they can’t afford it, and they just give it over to the city.”

— with files from Joyanne Pursaga

malak.abas@freepress.mb.ca