No tolerance for vacant property

By Grace Bauer

 

Passionate Windsorites were asking for a proactive approach to the city’s vacant home situation at a recent city council meeting.

On Oct. 2 almost every seat was filled with Windsorites, many from the downtown core, pleading their case to council members. They requested a vacant building registry.

According to city councillor Rino Bortolin, the Vacant Building Registry was proposed about a year ago by councillor Ed Sleiman. The registry would include all houses in Windsor which are deemed vacant following an inspection by a city clerk and three staff.

“Basically, they will drive around and do inspections,” said Bortolin. “There are 750 known vacant buildings in Windsor.”

Bortolin said from there they will issue an order to the city and the property in question will be added to the registry. The vacant building registry was approved at city hall on Oct. 2, which pleased many residents.

“We have had a lot of problems due to squatters, prostitutes and drug dealers. I’ve tried to call, but I don’t always want to call the police,” said Billie-Joe Werner, a Windsor resident who spoke in front of city council.

“I feel that there should be another way that we can deal with the vacant house. We shouldn’t have to call the police all the time or call 311. A lot of times, I’m not being heard.”

Many spoke about the health and safety hazards the vacant homes create in neighborhoods.

Brenda and Wayne Portice are a retired couple from Edmonton who said they moved to Windsor two months ago because they always wanted to live here.

“We basically hopped on a plane, came for four days, found a place to live and then went home and packed everything up,” said Brenda. “When we got here is when we found out what the downtown was like.”

Wayne said they faced the same problem in Edmonton, but after making the necessary changes, were able to drastically improve the vacant home situation.

“Maybe the city can take the initiative to start to brighten up the downtown area,” said Wayne. “The river walk is fantastic.”

Bortolin said the vacant building registry is only the beginning of the process. The registry will equip the city with the knowledge it needs to move further in dealing with these homes.

“The registry was charged to the 2018 budget, so we hope to get this started around the beginning of January,” said Bortolin.