L Sherwin

I live at 5885 Cavendish, known as the Montefiore. I'm freezing! My hydro bill is astronomical. Although this building was recently renovated, the insulation was not done properly. The windows, sliding doors, the outlets, any crevice/opening you can imagine; is not properly insulated. The ownership has now changed twice since opening less than a year ago. Occupancy is only at 30-35%. The lobby is beautiful and deceiving for anyone coming to visit and consider living here. There is no luxury. No gym, no pool, no patio, no doorman, no roof terrace. There have been floods/leaks due to improper installation and insulation of windows. The floors are made of cheap wood with concrete underneath and no insulation, adding to the cold. Tenants are using heating pads, electric blankets and wearing down jackets in order to stay warm, all while paying such high hydro bills, that it has become unaffordable. We are having to go to stores and buy foam/plastic/any type of temporary window covering, at our cost, and no assistance from the landlord. Several of the washer/dryer units are malfunctioning, so tenants are having to do their laundry in empty units and/or are awaiting a technician. The water pressure and quality are poor. There is a strong chemical odor from the tap/pipes and neither cold or hot at their extremes can be reached. Tenants in many cases have opted to pay the Regie/Rental Board and a group is being formed. Neither the past or present owners admit to any issues and assure us the insulation is fine. The non-smoking clause in the lease, is not being respected so we have to place towels under our front doors (which are not insulated properly) and our clothes, furniture, stink of cigarette and other smoke. Our lungs are breathing second hand smoke and possibly cross-contamination which is unacceptable and a safety risk at any time, but most especially during a pandemic. We had a power outage and there were no emergency lights in place. Imagine being a senior, just having moved here, alone, unable to navigate the hallways and stairs to get to the lobby. The garage doors did not have emergency pull chains so we could not drive out of the building. The fire department has been here several times, for work being done, without proper supervision, that caused a foul gas odor (and a carbon monoxide reading). No fire alarm or cabon monoxide alarm went off, we had to call the fire department ourselves. No management arrived on either of these occasions, nor could we reach them by phone. There is no doorman and the new owners have asked the live-in janitor to find somewhere else to live with his family; even though he has been the only source of some kind of support/assistance. There is a thick blanket of dust (blackened) covering our furniture, walls, ceilings - also a health hazard and proving the ventilation/air quality is poor. We are dealing with lockdown, Covid, isolation, and are not comfortable or safe in our own homes. We are stuck here for the time being, but the majority (of the small population) of us, will surely be leaving when our leases are up (or before).