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An unsafe apartment building continued to be neglected over several years and despite previous investigations the landlord was slapped with a $15,000 fine for failing to make the repairs.

It's the second time the Residential Tenancy Branch fined United Revenue Properties Ltd. in the past year after the company erroneously gave out eviction letters to its tenants in 2022.

This time the New Westminster landlord was hit with a penalty after neglecting repairs that threaten the health and safety of its tenants, according to a recently published tenancy branch decision.

Investigators were first notified of the building in July 2022 by a New Westminster bylaw officer who said the landlord was ignoring maintenance orders from the city and the fire department. The bylaw department had been trying to get the landlord to fix the building for two years by that time and the fire department had gotten involved much earlier.

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United Revenue Properties was the subject of several "deficient fire inspections" since 2009, according to the decision.

When the fire department inspected the property in 2022, they found problems with the boiler room, a lack of a fire safety plan, a poor sprinkler system and several others problems. The decision did not provide details on what the fire department found.

Aside from the fire safety issues, there were also major leaks in the roof or pipes, defective locks, and issues with both heating and electrical systems. The building was also found to be in violation of city bylaws related to pest control, garbage and structural integrity.

Although no further details were provided on the bylaw violations, the decision said, the landlord has paid five of its six bylaw fines since 2022, but still failed to repair the building.

"I am deeply concerned about the state of repair of the property," tenancy branch director of enforcement Scott McGregor said in the decision, noting it raises concern about whether the property is even suitable to be lived in.

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The decision does not say how many tenants live in the building nor does it say whether the any of the needed repairs have been done.

The City of New Westminster did not immediately respond to iNFOnews.ca when asked about the repairs.

United Revenue Properties owners Doreen Ouimet and Verner Kober did not respond to investigators when given an opportunity to respond to the investigation.

The new $15,000 fine is in addition to a previous $20,000 that followed erroneous eviction letters the company sent to its tenants. That fine was handed to the landlord in January, six months prior to the conclusion of this more recent investigation.

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The state of the building and investigation is similar to a building in Kamloops, which is also under investigation by the tenancy branch.

The derelict building at 91 Seymour Street West was shuttered by the Kamloops fire department last year and all tenants were ordered to leave.

Building inspectors found it was unsafe for people to live and ordered that it undergo the necessary repairs before anyone moves back in.

In that case, the building is still shuttered and the status of the repairs isn't known. The tenancy branch has not yet issued a final report on its findings.

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