Just like an episode of Big Brother, seven Jasperites are being forced out of their home due to illegal suite allegations.

About two weeks ago, the residents of four units on Bonhomme Street were issued with letters from their property manager explaining the need to “vacate” their homes.

Due to legal proceedings, property manager Cam Jenkins is unable to discuss the situation. However, the letter he signed states: “after a series of Parks Canada inspections conducted earlier this spring, the rental property you currently occupy has been determined to not meet Parks Canada zoning requirements.”

As the two homes are on R2 zoned land, which is a duplex dwelling district, they are legally allowed to have two suites within each house. However, the homes currently have four suites - two upstairs and two downstairs. Thus, Parks Canada has requested that the building be modified so that it complies with the regulations in place.

Dan Eves and Brian Croft are two of the people being asked to leave their homes. The situation has left them feeling unvalued and unwelcome.

“I’ve been here for three years, Dan’s been here for six, and so if we’ve been here for this long, we should be able to at least have a solid place to stay,” said Croft.

Consequently, Croft is looking for somewhere else affordable to live. “I like this town. I’ve gotten to know a lot of people here, made a lot of friends, lot of relationships that I’d like to keep going.”

“If worse comes to worst,” he said, “I have a hide-a-bed at my friend’s house.”

However, Eves - who has lived in several homes in Jasper - won’t just be leaving the premises, but will also be waving goodbye to Jasper.

“There is places to go, but who likes to move backwards. I’ll never live in Cavell again, I’m not living on my buddy’s couch ever again, I’m not doing that - I’m past that.”

Obviously frustrated with the predicament he finds himself in, Eves is searching for answers. “They seem eager to pull out the illegal suites, but what are they actually doing to improve the housing situation?”

“All I’ve seen is luxury condos, new houses being built but nothing for the general public... we’re the grease in the wheels here and we get shafted.”

While it’s hard to find a good time to evict somebody from their home, the issue of finding a home in Jasper during the summer months is an on-going issue that dates back many years.

Joe Polisuk, development officer for Parks Canada, admitted there’s never a good time to evict someone. While he couldn’t comment on how long this property had been known to have had illegal suites, he said the owners have had many opportunities to bring the property back into compliance prior to this summer.

“It’s been going on for years, it’s not just like suddenly it’s now, there’s been a lot of build up,” he said adding that “our first goal is to seek compliance from the lessee and I think in this particular case we’ve given him many opportunities to comply.”
ads “under details provided by Parks Canada to the owner’s lawyer, we have until mid-July to undertake these extensive and very disruptive renovations.”

For Eves, who’s lived in the apartment for more than two years, it just doesn’t make sense.

“It totally upsets me just to be put in this situation at the time of year,” said Eves, “it’s pretty much bulls---. If they’ve known about this for this long and it’s taken this, why couldn’t they wait until at least the fall, or early March or something when people actually had a fighting chance to get a good spot.”

No matter when Parks established the suites were illegal, the pair of Jasperites were not made fully aware of the situation until about two weeks ago when they received the letters - dated June 3, 2009. However, Eves had heard there was a possibility the suite was illegal.

“One of the wardens stopped by last summer, I didn’t actually get to talk to him, but he kind of presented the whole issue but there was no real warning from the realtors - there was kind of like, this is happening, or may happen.”

According to the letter issued by Jenkins, the property will “require extensive modifications and a lengthy period of time to bring it back to compliance”.

Polisuk was unable to discuss this property specifically, but said generally with illegal basement suites the issue is an illegal kitchen, with no vent or way of air escaping when cooking.

“To summarize very quickly and briefly, the kitchens, laundry facilities and separating doors at the bottom of the stairs will all need to be removed,” said the letter.

However, Polisuk did suggest that “there might be opportunities to perform the renovations while they’re still in there... to be honest I don’t think the renovations are that extreme.”

Despite this possibility, the current tenants will soon be homeless, left trying to find somewhere else to live while the home is made compliant.

The only way to stop this in future, according to Polisuk, is to be aware of the zoning regulations and note an obvious irregularities - such as separate doors to downstairs suites with one main door for the unit. “I don’t want to say, buyer beware though,” he said

Unfortunately for Croft and Eves, their knowledge wasn’t enough to stop them from being the latest victims.

“I kind of understood from zoning codes in Nova Scotia... there really wasn’t too much ventilation for the kitchen appliances except for our basement window, but everything else, it seemed at the time, to be up to code,” said Croft.

For Eves, who’s a little more experienced with the rental life in Jasper, there didn’t appear to be an issue. “You learn the hard way,” he said noting that “people have lived here for years and it’s always been kosher and I’ve been in several suites in this town that there is no way that they could meet any of these standards.”

“I’m talking people that have renovated basement suites with the roofs only like six-feet tall - there is so many more places that are way worse than this, there’s got to be.”

The possibility of more illegal suites in Jasper is not something Polisuk would rule out. However, the only time Parks would inspect is when there is the need for Parks consent. “The reason we’re doing the inspection is because someone came to us to ask us for something,” he said.

If there are no complaints about a unit, it will be left alone by Parks.

“If you’re living in your house for 42 years (the maximum lease time for property) and you never move or sell it, or do anything or keep your mortgage with the same company, you’re never going to see us,” he said.

The minority of inspections, about ten a year, come from people complaining about their illegal home, said Polisuk. He believes the low number is because “most houses are okay, or... people are sucking it up and living under conditions that they’re not complaining about.”

If you ask Eves, the latter is more then likely the winning combination.

“Prices with housing right now, who is going to come into town for a summer job and be nick-picky about where they’re going to live? They’re going to take what they can - what’s cheaper. They’re not going to go ‘oh, this is zoned wrong’ - that’s not going to happen,” he said.

“As if people are going to be choosey here, they’re not, people are not choosey here they’re lucky to get what they can.”

The good news is that, once the suite complies with zoning and safety regulations, the bedrooms can be rented out as one dwelling with the upstairs unit - making it a four bedroom, one kitchen, possibly two bathroom accommodation.

But, Croft and Eves wouldn’t be interested if it means paying the same rent they do now. “I’d want a very large decrease,” said Croft, noting that his current rent was pretty affordable for Jasper.

Polisuk agreed that the value of the units, once they’re no longer independent of each other, are good for families unit. “They’re definitely worth more as independent units,” he said.

While it doesn’t help Croft and Eves, the shovels should be in the ground this summer for the Sweetgrass Co-operative and the 42 units being built near Cavell Apartments thanks to Mountain Park Lodges and the Municipality.

For Polisuk this means there is some relief in sight for anyone else in an illegal suite. Hopefully, he said, the trickle down, or up, effect will mean that more rental units will become available to people - helping to move young, low income workers out of illegal basement suites and into safe homes.

While the MPL development wouldn’t offer a suitable home for Eves, he did acknowledge that “it would free up other places that the general population are renting” allowing him to move into a more permanent home.

“I would agree that the next great need is for a rental apartment building in this town,” said Polisuk adding that “rental, I think, is the key market that has to be addressed.”

However, until then, Croft and his neighbours are left searching for a suitable home - while Eves waves goodbye to Jasper.

The owner of the Bonhomme Street units could not comment on the situation before press time.