Category Archives: Slumlords

Ark Aid Street Mission closing beds, slashing hours after $1M homeless funding ends

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Daryl Newcombe

Published: April 01, 2026 at 8:58PM EDT

https://www.ctvnews.ca/london/video/2026/04/01/ark-aid-to-slash-beds-hours-amid-1m-funding-shortfall

Ark Aid Street Mission is sounding the alarm a day after a federal homelessness program and city hall’s cold weather response ended.

Executive Director Sarah Campbell says the financial shortfall will exceed $1 million for the frontline agency, forcing several difficult but necessary service cuts for homeless Londoners.

It represents approximately one-third of their operational funding, and means essential services like meals, showers, clothing, washroom access, assessments, referrals, and system navigation will now rely entirely on donor support.

A total of 50 overnight spaces this winter (across three locations) will immediately cease.

The Ark had operated London’s only seven day-a-week open door emergency service outside regular business hours.

Services at 696 Dundas St. will be reduced from between 20 and 24 hours a day — to just four hours.

“We’re currently stepping everything down, starting with the night beds for winter. We will then reduce our daytime hours and by the end of the month, we’ll have just four hours each day,” Campbell explained.

Those remaining hours will be around dinner time.

“We have anywhere between 50 to 70 people through the doors at any one time, and on an average weekend we’re seeing 400 unique individuals come through our space because on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays there are no other open doors,” Campbell added.

Shelter beds inside Ark Aid Street Mission at 696 Dundas St. in London, Ont. (File)

Twelve referral organizations had been utilizing The Ark as a drop-off location for homeless individuals, including London police and local hospitals.

Campbell is disappointed that no other government funding was made available before the previous federal program expired March 31.

“If we have zero government dollars, how do we make sure that we show up for the people who need us, when they need us most?” she asked rhetorically.

Among the other services lost or significantly reduced:

  • 24/7 assessment and stabilization
  • Encampment meal service
  • Basic needs access reduced to five days/week
  • Diversion and pathway-to-home supports

“These are essential basic needs, but they’re also life saving activities,” Campbell explained. “We don’t allow any drug use on site, but we do have overdoses around our building regularly. In fact, we’ve responded to 29 overdoses just since January, so being present here is critical.”

Ark Aid Street Mission is issuing an urgent plea to donors and all levels of government.

“We would like the funding gap filled by the municipal government because that’s the [level of government] we can go to directly, but it’s not their responsibility alone,” Campbell told CTV News. “It was federal funding that had come to the municipality [that ended], so we’re advocating to all levels of government.”

Campbell worries that fewer services, resources and indoor spaces will lead to more suffering on the streets of London.

“I don’t think there’s a person in London who doesn’t know that this is a catastrophe,” she said.

The beds inside The Ark’s Cronyn Warner Shelter are not affected by the funding shortfall, but its funding is scheduled to expire in one year.

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Daryl Newcombe

Daryl Newcombe

Originally Published by CTV.ca Here

Eviction saga highlights effect of treating housing as commodity: UVic prof

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Estair Van Wagner said the letter of the law was followed in Mark Plank’s high-profile eviction case, but not the “human rights element.”

Michael John Lo
Apr 2, 2026 4:30 AM

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Estair Van Wagner, associate law professor at the University of Victoria, outside the UVic Faculty of Law. DARREN STONE, TIMES COLONIST

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The near-eviction of a 63-year-old Victoria renter due to missed rent-increase payments brings home the impact of treating housing “as a commodity instead of a home,” says a University of Victoria associate law professor.

Estair Van Wagner said the letter of the law was followed in Mark Plank’s high-profile eviction case, but not the “human rights element.”

“The process of eviction, whether or not it actually results ultimately in the loss of someone’s home, is really traumatizing,” she said in an interview. “We should be building a system where we avoid that at all costs.”

Plank was set to be evicted on Tuesday from his Cook Street Village apartment after he lost a Residential Tenancy Branch hearing that he did not attend.

The self-described computer illiterate had been sent a rental-increase notice, then an initial 10-day eviction notice, via email to an account he does not access without the help of others. His property manager started the eviction process the first month he failed to pay the $24 increase, though his rent payment at the original $828 rate was accepted.

Following advocacy from groups like Together Against Poverty Society and the Victoria Tenants Union, he was able to reach a last-minute agreement to stay in his home.

Van Wagner said many people in situations like Plank’s don’t have the knowledge or confidence to use existing legal protections to help their case. “People will leave at the first instance of being told that they’re evicted without exercising their rights,” she said.

Plank didn’t report the fact that his studio unit had leaky taps and a broken fridge out of fear of jeopardizing his housing, even though a landlord is required by law to fix those issues once they are made aware of them.

“We aren’t providing enough legal education and resources and advocacy to make sure that folks not only know their rights, but feel that they can exercise them,” Van Wagner said.

While the media can highlight cases of so-called “nightmare tenants,” there are more rental units that aren’t being kept to provincial standards than problem tenants, she said.

Ultimately, preventing evictions, particularly for seniors, those with disabilities and others who are vulnerable in society, is the best way to prevent the homelessness crisis in Victoria and elsewhere from getting worse, Van Wagner said.

“The infrastructure around dealing with homelessness is extraordinarily expensive, and it’s expensive both on a very practical level of emergency shelters and services … but also on the long-term health and mental-health impacts it has on folks,” she said.

Van Wagner said better funding of legal services like those offered by TAPS is a good first step.

TAPS lawyer Leila Geggie Hurst said demand for legal help with evictions is extraordinarily high in Victoria, noting her organization’s walk-in capacity for tenancy issues filled up within four minutes on Tuesday morning.

“There used to be a time in the distant past when if a tenant got an eviction notice, they were able to pretty quickly find housing and move elsewhere,” she said.

But now, tenants are more desperate and more willing to fight to stay in their housing because there are fewer affordable options, Geggie Hurst said, adding that the loss of housing often causes a “catastrophic spiral” in someone’s life.

Kaeley Wiseman, a professor at Vancouver Island University’s master of community planning program, said people often assume there’s a safety net for people who are living in aging, cheaper buildings and are displaced for various reasons.

“They assume that people like Mark [Plank] will then get picked up by the non-profit sector,” said Wiseman, who is also principal of Wiser Projects, a non-profit housing development consultancy.

But finding subsidized, non-market housing is getting more difficult “because this provincial budget has axed that safety net,” Wiseman.

Premier David Eby’s government retroactively clawed back hundreds of millions of dollars in the province’s Community Housing Fund in its latest budget, effectively stalling many affordable-housing projects across B.C., including on Vancouver Island, Wiseman said.

The funding crisis in the non-profit construction sector is likely to last for the next decade, and that’s not good when it takes eight to 10 years to build a publicly funded housing project in Canada, she said.

“You can imagine the competition for the units that we have built in the last 15 years … is going to be fierce.”

Wiseman said 15 per cent of housing available in Canada should be non-market, but the actual amount is only around three to four per cent.

“So by cutting all this stuff, Eby has undermined our entire province,” she said.

mjlo@timescolonist.com

Originally Published On Times Colonist Web Site

The Toughest Kind of Love: Don’t Stop Writing Your Story

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Life is a collection of chapters, and some of them are undeniably painful to read. There is a popular sentiment that offers profound hope: “Don’t give up because of one bad chapter in your life. Keep going. Your story doesn’t end here.” This wisdom acknowledges that struggle is a part of the narrative, but it insists that it is not the final page. It is a call for resilience, a reminder that identity isn’t fixed by moments of failure or despair.

However, if we apply this metaphor to the crisis of homelessness and addiction on our streets, we must ask ourselves: Are we helping people turn the page, or are we simply buying them a new bookmark while they remain stuck in the same chapter?

The current approach to homelessness is often too passive, too willing to enable stagnation. It can be patronizing to assume that someone in the throes of addiction or living on the streets doesn’t need a hard response. By removing all expectations—by offering housing without requiring sobriety or a commitment to rehabilitation—we risk telling people that they aren’t capable of more . We accept their bad chapter as the whole book.

We need a shift from a handout to a hand up. This means coupling compassion with accountability. It means recognizing that allowing someone to continue using drugs without intervention is not kindness; it is a slow form of surrender . A truly compassionate response says, “Your story doesn’t end in addiction, and it doesn’t end on this street corner.”

Programs that are beginning to see success are those that provide shelter and support, but also demand recovery and work . They enforce rules, ban public camping, and use the leverage of the law to nudge individuals toward treatment. This isn’t about punishment; it’s about instilling the self-worth that comes from meeting expectations .

If we want to help people write a better chapter, we must stop editing around the margins of their misery. We must provide the structure and the hard line in the sand that says giving up is not an option. Because their story—and ours as a community—doesn’t have to end there.

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Statistical Reduction of Homlessness – Housing First | Europe + Scandinavia

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Housing First is an established concept in Finland since more than 15 years thanks to the Y-Foundation as a pioneer. The Y-Foundation was also one of the founding members of the Housing First Europe Hub.

In 2016 the Finish Y-Foundation together with FEANTSA established the Housing First Europe Hub. The Y-Foundation has been a key player in establishing Housing First as the main response to homelessness in Finland. Since 2007 national policies shifted towards reducing long-term homelessness through Housing First programmes.

As a result, in Finland, the utilisation of emergency and temporary accommodations, such as shelters, hostels, and temporary supported housing, has significantly declined. The number of homeless individuals residing in hostels or boarding houses decreased by 76% from 2008 to 2017. This reduction is attributed to the widespread adoption of prevention strategies, the replacement of outdated models of communal supported housing with Housing First and housing-led approaches, which largely replaced emergency shelters.

ARA, the Housing Finance and Development Centre, has also been involved in the implementation of Housing First in Finland since the start through subsidising new and renovated homes as well as giving housing advice to municipalities.

As a result, Finland is one of the only European countries that registers decreasing homelessness numbers. The country’s goal is to end homelessness in Finland all together.

Finland has managed to reduce homelessness in recent years, but homelessness as a phenomenon is still alive and well. The homelessness situation often escalates in the context of social and economic crises.

Originally Published on https://housingfirsteurope.eu/country/finland/

What the tiny little bugs in your carpet are, and why they could be bad news.

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Tom Kershaw & Paige Oldfield

Sun 16 February 2025 at 11:37 am GMT-8·1-min read

-Credit:Getty
-Credit:Getty

They may be small and swift, but if you notice this tiny silver creature scurrying around your home, you could be facing a significant and costly issue. Experts are advising anyone who spots a silverfish in their property to promptly check for dampness.

These shiny, teardrop-shaped insects thrive in moist conditions and are particularly fond of areas with water.

If you see one darting into or out of your skirting boards or crevices around window sills, it’s likely a sign of damp and moisture within your property. If not addressed, dampness can lead to a host of problems, including cracked bricks, rotting joists, decaying plaster, and spreading mould spores. In extreme cases, it can even compromise the structural integrity of the property and impact air quality.

Dampness can result from various factors, such as leaky drainpipes, condensation, ageing damp proofing, or inadequate ventilation, especially in bathrooms or kitchens where water vapour tends to linger. Identifying the cause can be tricky, but the presence of silverfish indoors usually signals that there’s dampness requiring attention.

Silverfish can be a sign of huge issues -Credit:Getty
Silverfish can be a sign of huge issues -Credit:Getty

The sooner signs of dampness are detected, the easier it will be to eradicate the bugs. It recommends looking for indications on walls like wet or damp patches, peeling wallpaper, and flaking plaster.

Other telltale signs include damp and musty smells, rotting wood, and the emergence of mould and mildew on walls, floors, or ceilings.

Among the proposed remedies are utilising a dehumidifier, maintaining good ventilation in your home, inspecting your gutters for leaks, applying damp-proof paint to your walls and, if necessary, engaging a professional to address areas impacted by rising dampness.

Originally published on Yahoo! United Kingdom

What Is A Slumlord?

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A slumlord is a derogatory term used to describe a landlord who knowingly maintains rental properties in poor or unsafe conditions, often while charging high rents. Slumlords typically neglect necessary repairs, ignore health and safety codes, and exploit tenants, often those in low-income or vulnerable situations who have limited housing options.

Characteristics of a Slumlord:

  1. Poor Property Maintenance: Failing to address issues like leaky roofs, broken heating systems, mold, pest infestations, or structural problems.
  2. Health and Safety Violations: Ignoring building codes, fire safety regulations, or sanitation standards.
  3. Exploitation of Tenants: Charging high rents for substandard housing, often targeting tenants who lack the resources or knowledge to advocate for themselves.
  4. Lack of Responsiveness: Ignoring tenant complaints or requests for repairs.
  5. Illegal Practices: Engaging in unethical or illegal activities, such as wrongful evictions, rent gouging, or refusing to return security deposits.
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Legal Context in Canada and the US:

Both Canada and the US have laws and regulations to protect tenants from slumlords, but enforcement varies by region.

  • Canada: Provincial and territorial laws govern rental housing. Tenants can file complaints with local housing authorities or tenant boards if landlords fail to meet their obligations. For example, in Ontario, the Residential Tenancies Act outlines landlord responsibilities, and tenants can seek recourse through the Landlord and Tenant Board.
  • US: Housing regulations are enforced at the state and local levels. Tenants can report violations to local housing authorities or take legal action. Many cities have tenant rights organizations that assist renters in dealing with slumlords.

Tenant Rights:

Tenants in both countries have the right to:

  • Live in a safe and habitable environment.
  • Request necessary repairs.
  • Withhold rent or take legal action if the landlord fails to address serious issues.
  • Be free from retaliation for reporting violations.

Addressing Slumlord Practices:

  • Document Issues: Tenants should keep records of complaints, repairs, and communication with the landlord.
  • Report Violations: Contact local housing authorities or tenant advocacy groups.
  • Legal Action: In severe cases, tenants may sue for damages or force the landlord to make repairs.

Slumlords contribute to the broader issue of housing inequality and the lack of affordable, safe housing in many urban areas. Combating their practices requires stronger enforcement of housing laws and increased support for tenants.

What Can I Do About A Slumlord?

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Dealing with a slumlord can be incredibly frustrating and stressful, but there are steps you can take to protect your rights and improve your living situation. Here’s a guide to help you navigate the situation:

1. Know Your Rights

  • Familiarize yourself with local tenant laws and housing codes. These vary by location but generally guarantee your right to a safe and habitable living environment.
  • Common landlord responsibilities include providing:
    • Working utilities (heat, water, electricity).
    • Proper sanitation and waste disposal.
    • Structural integrity (no leaks, mold, or pest infestations).
    • Safe and secure locks on doors and windows.
  • If your landlord is failing to meet these standards, they may be violating the law.

2. Document Everything

  • Keep a detailed record of all issues, including:
    • Photos and videos of unsafe or unsanitary conditions.
    • Written notes about when problems started and how they’ve been ignored.
    • Copies of all communication with your landlord (emails, texts, letters, etc.).
  • This documentation will be critical if you need to take legal action or report the landlord.

3. Communicate with Your Landlord

  • Notify your landlord in writing about the issues and request repairs. Be specific, polite, and keep a copy of the letter or email.
  • If they don’t respond or refuse to make repairs, send a follow-up notice and mention your legal rights.

4. Report Code Violations

  • Contact your local housing authority, health department, or building code enforcement agency to report unsafe or unsanitary conditions.
  • An inspector may visit your property and issue a violation notice to the landlord, forcing them to make repairs.
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5. Withhold Rent or Repair and Deduct

  • In some areas, tenants are allowed to withhold rent or pay for repairs themselves and deduct the cost from rent. However, this can be risky, so:
    • Check your local laws to ensure this is allowed.
    • Notify your landlord in writing before taking action.
    • Keep receipts and documentation for all repairs.

6. Join or Organize with Other Tenants

  • If other tenants are experiencing similar issues, consider organizing as a group. Landlords are more likely to respond to collective action.
  • You can also reach out to local tenant unions or advocacy groups for support.

7. Seek Legal Help

  • If your landlord continues to neglect their responsibilities, consult a tenant attorney or legal aid organization.
  • You may be able to:
    • Sue for damages or compensation.
    • Break your lease without penalty.
    • Force the landlord to make repairs through a court order.

8. Consider Moving

  • If the situation doesn’t improve and your health or safety is at risk, it may be best to find a new place to live.
  • Before moving, ensure you’re not violating your lease and that you’ve followed proper legal procedures to protect yourself from retaliation or eviction.

9. Report to Local Media

  • If the situation is severe and widespread, contacting local news outlets can bring attention to the issue and pressure the landlord to act.

10. Stay Safe

  • If you feel threatened or unsafe due to your landlord’s actions, contact local law enforcement or a tenant advocacy group immediately.

Resources to Help You:

  • Local Housing Authority: For reporting code violations or unsafe conditions.
  • Legal Aid Organizations: For free or low-cost legal advice.
  • Tenant Unions: For advocacy and support in organizing with other tenants.
  • State or Local Tenant Rights Websites: For information on your specific rights.

By taking these steps, you can hold your landlord accountable and work toward a safer, healthier living environment.

Arguments for Slumlords as a Source of Affordable Housing

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  1. Market Necessity: In areas with severe housing shortages, slumlords may provide the only available option for low-income individuals, preventing homelessness.
  2. Economic Realities: Some landlords claim they cannot improve properties without raising rents, which could displace tenants. Low-income tenants might prioritize cost over quality due to limited options.

Criticisms of Slumlords as a Blight:

  1. Exploitative Practices: Charging high rents for substandard housing capitalizes on tenants’ desperation, often violating health/safety codes.
  2. Health and Safety Risks: Poor conditions (e.g., mold, pests, structural issues) harm physical and mental health, disproportionately affecting marginalized communities.
  3. Moral Concerns: Profiting from inadequate housing perpetuates inequality and dehumanizes tenants, prioritizing profit over human dignity.
  4. Community Impact: Neglected properties contribute to neighborhood blight, reducing investment and perpetuating cycles of poverty.

Systemic Context:

  • Root Causes: Slumlords thrive in systems with inadequate affordable housing, weak regulation, and income inequality. They are a symptom of broader failures in housing policy.
  • Regulatory Gaps: Weak enforcement of housing standards allows slumlords to operate, while insufficient subsidies or public housing leave tenants with few alternatives.

Conclusion:

Slumlords are primarily a blight, exacerbating poverty and inequality through exploitation and neglect. While they may fill a temporary gap in housing supply, their practices harm individuals and communities. Addressing the issue requires systemic solutions:

  • Policy Interventions: Strengthen tenant protections, enforce housing codes, and expand affordable housing initiatives.
  • Ethical Alternatives: Promote public housing, rent control, and community land trusts to provide dignified, sustainable housing.

Ultimately, the existence of slumlords underscores the need for structural reforms rather than tolerating exploitative stopgaps.

slumlords provide affordable housing. In many cities, there’s a shortage of affordable housing, so even if the housing is substandard, it might be the only option for low-income individuals or families. Without these slumlords, maybe there would be even fewer options, leading to homelessness. But then, the counterargument is that the conditions in these properties are terrible, possibly violating health and safety codes. So even if it’s affordable, is it acceptable for people to live in such conditions?

You’ve highlighted a critical tension in the debate about slumlords and affordable housing: the trade-off between availability and quality. Let’s break this down further:

The Argument That Slumlords Provide Affordable Housing:

  1. Housing Shortages: In many cities, affordable housing is scarce due to rising costs, gentrification, and insufficient public housing. Slumlords fill a gap by offering low-cost options, even if the conditions are poor.
  2. Preventing Homelessness: For some low-income individuals or families, substandard housing may be the only alternative to living on the streets or in shelters, which can be even more precarious.
  3. Market Realities: Slumlords often operate in neighborhoods where property values are low, and the cost of maintaining or improving housing exceeds what tenants can pay. Without them, these properties might remain vacant or be redeveloped into unaffordable housing.

The Counterargument: Unacceptable Living Conditions:

  1. Health and Safety Risks: Substandard housing often violates health and safety codes, exposing tenants to hazards like mold, lead paint, pests, faulty wiring, and structural instability. These conditions can lead to serious health problems, especially for vulnerable populations like children and the elderly.
  2. Exploitation: Slumlords often charge rents that are disproportionately high relative to the quality of the housing, exploiting tenants who have no other options.
  3. Moral and Ethical Concerns: Allowing people to live in such conditions raises ethical questions about dignity and human rights. Affordable housing should not come at the cost of basic safety and well-being.
  4. Long-Term Costs: Poor housing conditions can perpetuate cycles of poverty by affecting tenants’ health, education, and employment opportunities, ultimately costing society more in healthcare, social services, and lost productivity.

The Broader Systemic Issue:

The existence of slumlords is a symptom of deeper systemic failures:

  • Lack of Affordable Housing: Governments and private developers have not built enough affordable housing to meet demand, leaving low-income individuals with few options.
  • Weak Regulation and Enforcement: In many places, housing codes are not strictly enforced, allowing slumlords to operate with impunity.
  • Economic Inequality: Rising income inequality and stagnant wages make it difficult for many people to afford decent housing, forcing them into substandard options.

Is It Acceptable?

While slumlords may provide a temporary solution to housing shortages, the conditions they offer are fundamentally unacceptable. Affordable housing should not come at the cost of health, safety, or dignity. The solution lies in addressing the root causes of the problem:

  • Policy Solutions: Governments should invest in affordable housing, enforce stricter housing codes, and provide subsidies or incentives for landlords to improve properties.
  • Community Initiatives: Nonprofits and community land trusts can develop and maintain affordable, high-quality housing for low-income residents.
  • Tenant Protections: Stronger tenant rights and rent control measures can prevent exploitation and ensure that housing remains affordable and habitable.

In conclusion, while slumlords may fill a gap in the short term, their existence is a symptom of systemic failures that need to be addressed. Affordable housing should not mean substandard housing, and society must strive to provide safe, dignified living conditions for all.