City of Kamloops warns of 'renoviction' for its hotel tenants within 'months'
Despite early indications the City of Kamloops would wait years to redevelop a North Shore hotel it purchased last fall, its low-income tenants are now being told they'll be moving on within months, leaving some wondering where they can find a new affordable home.
The Northbridge Hotel has been planned to be demolished since the City announced the $7 million purchase in October, with the goal to replace it with market housing. On Oct. 1, 2021, a letter to tenants notified them they should not worry about an immediate eviction, but the property will be redeveloped "in the coming years."
Some tenants have left since then, but people who still live in the Northbridge Hotel are being moved "in the coming months," according to a letter from the City, which owns the building.
The letter to the hotel tenants was sent on April 7, the same day the City applied to itself for a partial demolition permit for The Duchess.
The 59-unit dilapidated former hotel is in need of hundreds of thousands of dollars in repairs, if the City had planned to keep it standing. Despite its condition, tenants paying less than $1,000 per month may be feeling anxious about their options in the tight Kamloops real estate market.
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One tenant told iNFOnews.ca that he's applied to Ask Wellness for new housing, unsure of exactly when he'll have to move on.
The tenant, Robert, wouldn't give his last name, but he's nearly 60 years old, lives on disability assistance, and he's lived there for eight years. He's not sure what else he'll be able to afford in the city.
The April 7 letter to tenants explains the City will be working with B.C. Housing and Ask Wellness to help them find an "alternative safe, suitable and affordable shelter or housing option in the community that meets your needs." The original October letter made similar promises to help find new housing, but made no mention of a "shelter."
The letter adds that the City is not giving the tenants a formal notice yet, but one could be issued "in the near future."
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Robert was told Ask Wellness will be prioritizing tenants when they are moved into new housing, and people 60 or older would be higher priority.
The City announced the purchase of the 377 Tranquille Road property in October, which included the large 346 Campbell Avenue property behind the hotel.
Although they were never given a definite timeline for the City's plans to sell the hotel to a private developer, Robert was caught off guard and is trying to find a new home before an eviction notice lands in his mailbox. The early indications of redevelopment "in the coming years" left him believing he had more time in his current home.
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Carmin Mazzotta, social housing and community development manager for the City penned the letter, but he was not immediately available to comment on this story.
iNFOnews.ca also reached out to Ask Wellness, the building operator, but a staff member could not be reached in time for publication.
The two properties were purchased by the City for $7.1 million, with B.C. Housing expected to pay $3.8 million for the 346 Campbell Avenue property for future affordable housing.
The Northbridge Hotel, however, has been planned to be sold to a private developer for market housing.
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