Thursday, November 02, 2006

POOR TENANTS being MISTREATED by CONSTRUCTION FIRM

POOR TENANTS being MISTREATED by CONSTRUCTION FIRM

Hi Friends,

I have sent out this media release below regarding DERA and the Construction Firm they Hired for remedial repairs at Pendera. Tenants of the Pendera where I reside are being harassed and mistreated by this construction firm, Pomeroy, who is acting in tandem with DERA. They also are diminishing quality of life for tenants at Pendera.

We are requesting the City to provide an immediate Stop Work order due to a number of serious problems caused by Pomeroy and DERA. We are also asking BC Housing to investigate our complaints since they are providing taxpayer funding to Pomeroy. Pomeroy has work permits from the City which have created many hazzards for the tenants at Pendera. Please send an email to the Mayor and Councillors Suzanne Anton and Peter Ladner requesting their intervention to stop this MISTREATMENT for tenants living in subsidized housing.

Emails are for Councillor anton clranton@vancouver.ca and Councillor Ladner at clrladner@vancouver.ca or Mayor Sullivan at sam.sullivan@vancouver.ca

If you prefer to leave a phone message Ms Anton's number is (604) 873-7248 and Mr. Ladner's is (604) 873-7241

Many Thanks
Jamie Lee

Press Release

CONSTRUCTION FIRM HIRED by DERA MISTREATING TENANTS in
BC SUBSIDIZED HOUSING


Vancouver, BC

Construction firm, Pomeroy Construction which is
performing remedial envelope repair work at the
Pendera Social Housing project is harassing tenants
while they are working on the repair, claims Jamie Lee
Hamilton and Danny Kostyshin, officers of the Pendera
Tenants Association (PTA).


" Pomeroy has impeded the rights of tenants to move
about freely in our building and they have denied
Pendera gardeners access to our gardens from 7am-4pm
daily. When we ventured out to explore the damage
being done to our community garden, Pomeroy went to
DERA, demanding that we be given written reprimands
about access to our gardens ", states Danny Kostyshin.


Ms Hamilton, another tenant at Pendera and President
of the PTA states, " Pomeroy is acting
inappropriately in our building and this latest action
by Pomeroy cannot be tolerated ".


A number of concerns the PTA have against Pomeroy
include:

- Pomeroy took over the tenants public community
room, funded by BC Housing for the use of tenants of
Pendera.

- Now Pomeroy is restricting access to tenants of our
community garden.

- Further, Pomeroy has a number of times, locked down
the elevators of the Pendera for their exclusive use.

- Pomeroy has put an outhouse in our community garden
even though there are two public washrooms in the
building. One is in the tenants room, taken over by
Pomeroy.

- Pomeroy has locked tenants balcony doors on south
side of the Pendera denying tenants any fresh air.

- Pomeroy workers on a number of occasions have made
dis paring remarks about tenants.
"

Why Pomeroy is using the Pendera tenants room as a
site office and lunch room for the exclusive use of
their construction workers is particularly obscene
considering tenants who live in subsidized housing,
without well paid construction jobs, have all their
amenity space taken away from them by a private
company which makes a good profit and workers who make
a good salary doing construction ", charges Hamilton.

Moreover, Pomeroy by going to DERA verbally
complaining about tenants as they have done has
created major conflict for a number of Pendera
tenants.

To back up this claim, Mr. Kostyshin and Ms Hamilton
cite a letter addressed to two tenants from DERA
threatening them with eviction if they step out into
the community gardens or public rooftop of the Pendera
building.

Tensions are running extremely high at the building
and the Pendera Tenants Association is requesting a
City of Vancouver stop work order of Pomeroy until,
the City of Vancouver and BC Housing who is supplying
the funding for Pomeroy and PTA Representatives are
able to amicably address the substantial conflict
going on at the Pendera.

-30-

For more info Jamie Lee (778) 329-1981