Monday, June 7, 2010

“Fiorito: Tenant or bedbug which came first, and what does it matter?”

“Fiorito: Tenant or bedbug which came first, and what does it matter?”

Fiorito: Tenant or bedbug which came first, and what does it matter?

Posted: 06 Jun 2010 10:09 PM PDT

 

To: Harry Fine, Landlord Solutions

Re: Landlords, Tenants and Bedbugs

Dear Harry:

Let me respond to your recent letter to the editor regarding the Renter's Right To Know Act.

The act, for those who missed it, is a private member's bill put forward by Liberal Mike Colle; it would compel landlords to advise tenants if the units they wish to rent have, or have had, bedbugs.

I don't want to read between the lines, but you seem to want to blame tenants for the bedbug problem.

As you surely know, all sorts of people pick up bedbugs in all sorts of ways — often in rental housing — and if I get bedbugs here, and if I carry them with me there, who's to blame?

In any case, what does it matter?

As you know, bedbugs are wildly successful: they travel freely, they feed on human blood, they are hard to eradicate, they develop resistance to pesticides (including DDT), they cause untold suffering to tenants and, yes, they cause landlords enormous trouble and expense.

The problem belongs to all of us; ducking it, or assigning blame, is futile and serves none of us. In fact, the reluctance of landlords to accept a leading role in solving the bedbug problem actually makes things worse.

You suggest it is next to impossible to evict a tenant. Let me clarify that your business, Landlord Solutions, is an eviction specialist, and I'll bet you do okay.

But even if you were right, the law has a duty to protect the weak from the whims of the powerful. Surely that's a good thing.

In your letter, you also take a swipe at the Streets To Homes program, blaming it, in part, for the spread of bedbugs. Streets To Homes is no more responsible for the spread of bedbugs than you are or I am.

And, as you surely know, many people are on the streets because they won't stay in shelters, which are sometimes unsafe, always uncomfortable, and lacking in privacy and security and, yes, because they can be buggy.

An aside: Toronto's most progressive shelter, Seaton House, has pioneered a program of bedbug eradication called Bug 'N Scrub; it is not without its flaws and limitations but it seems to work.

But the only foolproof method I know of is the heat eradication program being used in Winnipeg.

You could — no, you should — look it up.

But here is a point of agreement and mutual concern: when you spoke of problem tenants, you put your finger on an issue larger than you know.

Yes, there are problem tenants. I've met some of them. Often, they suffer from mental illness; sometimes they incorporate bedbugs into their daily reality.

They need help.

You know as well as I do that, should a social worker knock on a door and ask if a person is okay, and that person says they are okay, then the social worker — a mediocre one, at least — will walk away, in order to protect the tenant's right to privacy.

This is a case where rights collide: you may have a right to privacy, but I have a right to live free from bedbugs. The remedies are not clear.

Nobody I know feels comfortable calling the cops, or involving the Public Guardian, when they suspect a neighbour has slipped.

We need to figure this out.

Landlords could be helping to lead the way, with wit and imagination and sensitivity. Sadly, most landlords — at least the ones who write to me — would rather bitch and moan.

As for MPP Mike Colle, rather than write letters to the editor, I think you find ways to work with him.

What do you say?

Cheers,

Joe

 

Joe Fiorito usually appears Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Email :jfiorito@thestar.ca
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