Mobile Home Displacement in Westbank, British Columbia
WFN protecting homeowners by Wayne Moore - Story: 37346
Feb 15, 2008 / 6:00 pm
Westbank First Nation has spoken up on the issue of the possibility of displacing manufactured homeowners as a result of re-development.
During the Annual General Meeting of the WFN Advisory Council, some in attendance raised the possibility of the displacement of tenants due to re-development of manufactured home parks on WFN lands.
"We don't take these matters lightly, and want to ensure the rights and interests of all WFN residents are adequately protected by WFN law and policy” says WFN Chief, Robert Louie.
He says under WFN Residential Premises Law, manufactured homeowners are afforded similar protections to those under the Provincial Residential Tenancy Act.
"In the event of redevelopment, all tenants receive twelve months’ notice of an end of tenancy and reimbursement for moving expenses up to a maximum amount of $2000. Additionally, the Residential Premises Law requires landlords to obtain all necessary permits and approvals prior to terminating tenancies on the basis of a redevelopment."
Louie says processes have been set out that must be conducted before a re-development can take place.
He says the process, in most cases, includes notification to adjacent property owners and the Advisory Council, who have the opportunity to provide feedback to the WFN Council.
"There are no pending applications for redevelopment of Manufactured Home Parks on WFN lands, and that he has no knowledge of such re-development being planned in the immediate future."