Residents living in 'ice box' blame building's broken boiler

Space heaters have become the new normal for tenants at 16 Saint Joseph St. They haven’t had central heat in their building for weeks. It’s long Johns and three shirts on and tukes and hoodies. It’s hard to shower or do basic needs or even cook for having sakes. I stand in my kitchen. It is a frozen ice box. The building’s corporate owner, Achilles, sent a notice to tenants on March 4th saying the boiler has run its course and is beyond repair. The company says it had already installed a new electric heat pump system to replace the aging boiler, but says the electrical upgrade needed to operate the system. Hasn’t yet been completed. Tenants were offered a rent rebate and were given small space heaters, but warned not to use them for long periods because of low electrical capacity in the building, a solution this tenant advocate says is unacceptable. You’re supposed to have heat in your apartment. That’s what the law says. The law doesn’t say that you have to have a space heater. The building was built in 1927. Since the heat went out, tenants tell CBC Toronto they’ve measured inside temperatures as low as 14°. Landlords are required to provide heat to a minimum of 21°. Local MPP Kristen Wong Tam sent a letter to Achilles on the weekend demanding action to ensure the health and safety of tenants, including providing nearby hotel rooms until heating is restored. The tenants are are shivering and they’re cold, they’re getting sick, and some of them are getting sicker because they’re already quite vulnerable. Is actually not just immoral and unreasonable, but most importantly, it’s illegal by way of. Property standards. Three weeks after the first notice, the tenants and two days after the letter from Wong, Tam Achilles offered to pay for nearby hotel stays and says it’s bringing in a generator this week to power up the heat pump. A company executive told CBC it takes the issue very seriously and says it took time to find a suitable generator and contractors to install it. Sarah McMillan, CBC News, Toronto.