City to remove rubble from Sherbrook Street fire site

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This article was published 15/03/2024 (582 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The City of Winnipeg has taken over the cleanup of the massive pile of debris left behind after a vacant apartment block on Sherbrook Street burned to the ground more than two years ago.

The government will hire a company to complete a wet demolition and clear away the rubble at 694 Sherbrook St., which was destroyed by fire on Feb. 14, 2022.

Nearby residents, who had repeatedly demanded action by the owner or government, welcomed the development.

“I think it’s wonderful, I think it’s great. Two years and a month too late but, hey, we’re happy,” said Cheryl Martens, a Spence resident.

Martens said the site posed numerous problems for residents, especially at times when the fence around it came down and garbage was dumped on top of the rubble.

“I think it’s terrible. It’s been sitting in our neighbourhood and it’s very discouraging to have that kind of rubble just sitting around. It’s dangerous. There are people living on all sides (of) it and there are winds that blow through it and pets that crawl through it. So, if there’s asbestos in it, (how will that affect) the neighbourhood?” she said.

Martens said the site is just one of a few problem lots in the area. She urged the city to consider changing its bylaws so it can move more quickly to get owners to clean up the sites and take over the work when they don’t.

“If (the city has) to clear it because the landlord doesn’t have the money or the wherewithal or the will, then I think (the city) should get the property. I think there would be a lot more motivation for people to clean up their property, if they knew they would lose it if they didn’t do it,” she said.

Martens said city officials promptly responded to her inquiries about the rubble site and took the matter seriously. However, she is concerned about the length of time it took to get a cleanup plan in place.

“You don’t feel like (your neighbourhood) matters at all when this can sit here for two years on a major street,” she said.

“You don’t feel like (your neighbourhood) matters at all when this can sit here for two years on a major street”–Cheryl Martens

The city sent a “mitigate unsafe condition” order to clean up the site by Feb. 15, 2023, to numbered companies linked to the site but the rubble remained. The owner(s) did not attend a council committee meeting held about the order last year.

A lawyer for Access Credit Union, which doesn’t own the site but holds a mortgage on it, unsuccessfully appealed the deadline by arguing that work was delayed due to negotiations between the credit union and its insurer.

Coun. Cindy Gilroy (Daniel McIntyre), who has long advocated for the city to do more to clean up rubble at 694 Sherbrook and other sites, also welcomed the progress.

“People were trying to sell their houses right around (it), they couldn’t get any buyers. I’ve heard of rodents and pests and other things being added to this mountain of piled up (rubble.) It just doesn’t look like we care as a city… when we leave things like that in disarray,” said Gilroy.

She said the price to clear debris from lots is typically the biggest obstacle to getting the work done. City officials hope to get the debris removed around June, said Gilroy.

“The first thing the city does is exhaust every avenue they have with the owner to do the work prior to coming up with a decision to clear it themselves. Clearly this was a very… complex case,” she said.

Gilroy said staff plan to add the price of the cleanup to the owner’s tax bill, so the city’s costs are eventually covered.

Mayor Scott Gillingham said he agrees it’s time for the city to step forward to clean the site, while he’s also focused on addressing others.

“This issue of 600-plus properties… that are derelict, some of them piles of rubble for months on end, it’s frustrating to me and something I will continue to work on,” said Gillingham.

The mayor said discussions are underway with the provincial government to consider additional changes, potentially affecting bylaws and fines, to crack down on derelict properties.

“This issue of 600-plus properties… that are derelict, some of them piles of rubble for months on end, it’s frustrating to me and something I will continue to work on”–Scott Gillingham

“My message to property owners who are sitting on derelict property or sites of rubble is simple: Get it cleaned up, because if we have to bring in tougher measures or stiffer fines, I’m glad to do it,” said Gillingham.

The city can take over the remediation of a private property “as a final resort” when owners are “unresponsive” to a compliance order, said city spokesman David Driedger, in an email.

Driedger noted “wet demolition,” where a fine mist of water is applied over debris to suppress dust and prevent potentially hazardous material from becoming airborne, is required at the Sherbrook site.

The city hopes to finish cleaning that property by fall at the latest.

“The substantial performance date is expected to occur on or before Oct. 31, 2024 (note: it’s our hope that this can be achieved in spring 2024),” he said.

The city expects a tendering process for a company to clean up the site will help determine the cost to do so.

joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca

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