Expanded Authority to Notify Renters Impacted by Renovations

Whereas renters are facing the risk of displacement and housing insecurity as a result of renovations to existing rental buildings; And whereas the Residential Tenancy Act does not currently require landlords to provide proof of permits or a description of the scope of work for renovations where tenancies are likely to be terminated, and municipalities have limited authority to require notification related to tenancy issues as a condition of issuance of certain permits; And whereas existing renters facing evictions due to renovations could benefit from information on the type and extent of renovations being undertaken to their buildings in order to support potential cases with the Residential Tenancy Branch: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM request the Province to amend the Local Government Act, in alignment with changes that Vancouver wants to the Vancouver Charter, to clarify and broaden the conditions that can be imposed on building or development permit applications submitted for renovations or redevelopment of an existing building that contains rental housing units including, but not limited to, requiring applicants to provide information on existing tenancies and communicating the proposed work related to the requested permit.