Landlord advisory office to close
Email
Print
Letter to Editor
Share
Updated: November 21, 2008 12:20 PM
By next spring, city residents will have no choice but to use a provincial 1-800 telephone service to get answers to their tenancy questions, once the local landlord and tenant information service is forced to shutdown.
The service provided by Community Information and Referral Society will be coming to an end on March 31 after the City of Red Deer decided to cut funding to the program.
“In the absence of a change of some kind in the funding status, we will have to discontinue the service as of Apri1 1,” said David Laing, vice-chairman of the board of directors for CiRS.
Between January and October, the service has had more than 10,000 clients.
The walk-in service provides clarification on the rules and responsibilities of landlords and tenants set out in the Residential Tenancy Act.
Most recently, program workers helped provide Arlington Inn tenants with clarification on their rights when the hotel was purchased by the city.
Workers also worked with tenants during the controversial sale of Monarch Place and the conversion of Wedgewood Gardens into condominiums.
The program receives $81,000 annually from the city. That’s the majority of its funding.
Other funding comes from the sale of lease agreements and other related documents, as well as hosting educational workshops on the Residential Tenancy Act.
The service has been funded by the city for the past 12 years.
Scott Cameron, the city’s Social Planning Department manager, said his department has not yet made a final decision on funding.
“Administratively, we’re moving in the direction of a recommendation that would see this funding come to an end March 31,” Cameron said.
But the final decision is up to city council in January when the 2009 operating budget goes to council, he said.
