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Eviction halted for B.C. woman deemed 91Ƶtoo young91Ƶ for seniors91Ƶ home

Zoe Nagler, 46, had been given notice after living in the seniors complex in Comox for six years
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Zoe Nagler has lived in this one bedroom suite in d91ƵEsterre Gardens for the past six years but received an eviction notice in January because she is too young to live in the senior91Ƶs facility. Nagler has cerebral palsey. Photo by Jolene Rudisuela

Zoe Nagler is relieved to be able to stay in her one-bedroom suite at a seniors91Ƶ home in Comox after receiving an eviction notice in January.

The 46-year-old who has cerebral palsy has been living in d91ƵEsterre Gardens, a low-income housing facility managed by d91ƵEsterre Seniors Citizens Society, for the past six years. The facility91Ƶs minimum age requirement is 65, or 55 for people with disabilities, but Nagler was originally allowed tenancy because of her disability.

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But in January, the society tried to evict her because of her age.

She contested the eviction in mid-March. An arbitrator ruled the society had no grounds to evict her, saying 91Ƶthe tenancy agreement does not authorize the landlord to end the tenancy if the tenant ceases to meet the age requirement.91Ƶ

91ƵIt91Ƶs a great relief because there is nothing for someone on my budget,91Ƶ she said. 91ƵI only get the shelter allowance for rent 91Ƶ $375 a month and that91Ƶs not a rent that exists anymore.91Ƶ

Nagler said she would have had to move in with her mother if the decision had not been in her favour.

The Residential Tenancy Branch later determined that the basis for the eviction 91Ƶ section 49.1 of the Residential Tenancy Act 91Ƶ did not apply in Nagler91Ƶs case, as she was not living in a subsidized rental unit. While d91ƵEsterre Gardens has been affiliated with BC Housing previously, their agreement expired two years ago.

The decision also detailed that she had never been required to demonstrate that she met the age requirement, and it would be unfair to evict her after she had already been allowed to live in the unit for six years.

Her lawyer, Joe Marrie, had taken the case pro bono after the was published in The Comox Valley Record.

91ƵFrom the start, something seemed wrong about it, and people don91Ƶt always know how to argue their rights in these situations,91Ƶ said Marrie. 91ƵI thought it would be really, really crummy to read about Zoe Nagler being put out on the street over something that seemed like it was totally unfair to do.

91ƵMy impression is that the society is doing its best to protect what it perceives as its interests.91Ƶ

D91ƵEsterre Senior Citizens Society denied a request for comment.

Teona Sparkes, a second underage resident who received an eviction notice, did not pursue arbitration and has decided to move on from the housing complex.


jolene.rudisuela@comoxvalleyrecord.com

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