The City of Winnipeg was accused of revictimizing some property owners following arson on Wednesday, due to a policy that charges them for fire responses at their vacant buildings.
Council’s executive policy committee opted to at least double each penalty within the latest round of proposed fees, deeming the charges one effective step toward deterring owners from neglecting empty properties.
The changes would require full council approval.
MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS
Maria Suzuki, who has been charged for fire responses at her vacant property at 456 Elgin Ave., says owners should be refunded the fee if they renovate promptly.
Lawyer John Prystanski said more effort should be focused on those who set the fires, instead of fining those who own the properties.
“Having the victim of the fire be revictimized by the City of Winnipeg to charge another fee for something they never caused (is a problem) … Why are they punishing them twice?” Prystanski said in an interview.
The lawyer said he represents four different property owners who have been charged for firefighting responses, all of whom were renovating their properties.
While some vacant buildings do pose concerns, the city should offer refunds in some cases, he said.
“If the penalty fee could be reduced or refunded to the property owner after (a renovation) is completed within a period of time … it becomes less of a penalty and more of a refundable cost to do business,” said Prystanski.
The Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service first began billing some vacant building owners in March 2023 for the full cost to fight fires on their properties.
The average response fee was $26,000 per property last year, while the highest was $138,000, depending on the circumstances. A WFPS report proposes to replace that system with a standard set of fees, which would charge $5,000 for the first fire at eligible properties, $10,000 for the second, $15,000 for the third and $20,000 for the fourth and each subsequent fire.
The service found the current strategy failed to reduce the number of blazes last year and few owners actually paid the fees.
Instead of following WFPS recommendations, EPC voted Wednesday to charge $10,000 for a first fire, $20,000 for a second, $30,000 for a third and $50,000 for a fourth or subsequent blaze. These would be charged to affected property owners billed before and after the fees take effect, which could lead to some refunds.
A property owner charged under the original fee schedule said she was disappointed the request for refunds to those who promptly renovate their properties wasn’t granted.
“I’m disappointed, for sure, and I think they didn’t really hear … the point (we were making),” said Maria Suzuki. “How I see it is they just want to punish the vacant building owners and they didn’t see the other side of the stories.”
Suzuki said she is renovating a home at 456 Elgin Ave., that has now endured four fires, which led to about $180,000 of fines. She said she paid $6,000 a month off the tab for several months before the city began reviewing its fee system.
She said she was glad to see WFPS recommend lowering the fees, on average, and questioned how councillors expect higher fees would get paid.
“Even $5,000 for a first fire (was) a lot of money for a property owner because we could be using that money to renovate and have that house inhabited again. I think it’s still not fair to be billing everybody,” she said.
A WFPS report notes just $78,450 out of $1,149,883 in charges last year were paid. It cautions higher fees could prevent some landowners from funding renovations that create more affordable housing.
Coun. Evan Duncan, who raised the motion to increase the latest set of fees, said significant penalties are needed to deter inaction.
“I think that there are cases where people have these properties sitting for extended periods of time and … there are problems with fires and we should be more proactive,” said Duncan (Charleswood-Tuxedo-Westwood).
The councillor said he expects an appeal process could help address concerns from property owners who want to be reimbursed following renovations.
“We should look at an appeals process that council actually hears. There is some value to that, being able to plead your case,” said Duncan.
Mayor Scott Gillingham said he’d need time to consider any proposals for fee refunds. Gillingham stressed the city must address any neglected properties with both incentives and penalties.
“We have 700 vacant and derelict properties in the city of Winnipeg. We need those properties turned into residential development. It’s unfair to … neighbours who have to sit and look at boarded-up buildings for months, and sometimes years, on end,” he said.
While the EPC-endorsed fee levels would at least double each fee WFPS proposed, if council approves the plan, the mayor said he thinks that increase would be reasonable.
Property owners can be charged the firefighting fees after they have received at least one vacant-building bylaw inspection. Fires caused by natural disasters or vehicle collisions, as well as those that started at another property, are exempt.
joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca
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Joyanne Pursaga
Reporter
Joyanne is city hall reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. A reporter since 2004, she began covering politics exclusively in 2012, writing on city hall and the Manitoba Legislature for the Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in early 2020. Read more about Joyanne.
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