Langford residents who were told their new high-rise apartment building is structurally unsound are packing up and leaving their apartments just months after moving in.
City officials are strongly encouraging residents of Danbrook One, at 2766 Claude Rd., to move out immediately following the release of a report Friday saying “there is a life safety concern for tenants in the building.”
The city is footing the bill for temporary accommodation in hotels until the building can be made safe, but some residents said they have no interest in returning to the building even if repairs bring it up to code.
“We’re not going to go back, because we don’t trust that the building’s going to be safe even after whatever the hell they do,” said Samantha Martin. “What happens if whatever repairs they do don’t work?”
For Martin and her partner, Tad, the news means they’ll be moving for the third time since June, when they found an apartment on the third floor of Danbrook One after eight months of searching for a place that would take their two dogs. The couple relocated to a loft on the ground floor this month.
They had been living in a tent in Port Renfrew for four months before finding a place in Danbrook One.
The couple checked into a hotel room Wednesday after the city notified residents there were concerns about the building’s safety.
Volunteers from Langford’s emergency support services, operating out of a space near the building at 780 Goldstream Ave., are arranging temporary accommodations and providing lists of available rentals to residents who don’t want to move back into the building.
Of the options offered to the Martins, many prohibit dogs and are more expensive than what they’re paying now, making their search for a new home difficult.
“I’m very scared about where we’re going to go with our dogs in the rental market that we have. There’s nothing available,” Tad Martin said.
When city officials told Karen McEvay the building was unsafe, she decided to move out temporarily, but said she’ll move back in if she’s told it’s safe to do so. McEvay praised the city’s response and the volunteers working long hours to find residents temporary and long-term solutions.
“Everybody’s been wonderful. That’s really important,” she said. “The volunteers are outstanding. They’ve been great.”
About 25 volunteers with the city’s emergency support services were on hand Friday and again on Saturday starting at 7 a.m. to get residents into temporary accommodation in four Langford hotels.
Anne Trick, director of Langford’s emergency support services, said members of the community who aren’t affected are showing up to help.
“People are coming in bringing us goodies. People are coming in offering us free storage facilities for people. Everything that can be made helpful is being done,” she said.
Langford Mayor Stew Young said about half of the building’s residents have decided to leave.
He remains hopeful that the building owner and engineers will be able to find a solution quickly, but couldn’t say how long it might take.
Young said the fix involves “shoring up some beams on the first and second floor,” and, hopefully, won’t require major work.
The city has paid for hotels up until Dec. 27, but will look at extending hotel stays beyond then if residents can’t move back in.
“We’re not going to leave anybody standing outside the building,” he said.
Young said he hopes some people will be able to stay with family, as many hotels are booked up over the Christmas period. Displaced residents may have to move to hotels outside Langford.
The city has set a maximum budget of $400,000 to relocate residents and will try to recover the costs through insurance.
A fundraising page set up by Langford’s Economic Development Committee had raised more than $27,000 as of 6 p.m. Saturday.
Young said the money raised will be distributed to residents to cover unexpected costs.
The building owner, Centurion Property Associates, did not respond to interview requests.
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