‘I’ll die in my home’: Evicted Glen Elm residents seeking remedy from Regina council

Residents of the Glen Elm Mobile Home Community are still feeling a lot of pressure under the weight of eviction notices.

Many spoke as delegates during Wednesday’s city council meeting, hoping the City of Regina could offer them help.

Read More:

• Regina trailer park tenants in shock after rental agreements terminated
• Amendment to zoning bylaw offers hope to evicted Glen Elm trailer park tenants
• Graffiti covers inside of Saskatoon’s Vimy War memorial on 108th anniversary of WWI battle

“Some people have mortgages and some people are going to have to file for bankruptcy,” said Rachel Torrie, a resident of the trailer court and a member of the Glen Elm Retirement Community Association.

“Because of this whole situation, the entire park is suffering emotionally, mentally and physically.”

Torrie asked council to find a way to allow residents to stay in the community while they search for other places to go.

In eviction letters sent out by Glen Elm Properties starting in January, tenants were informed that main water and sewage infrastructure leading to some homes reached a “state of catastrophic failure.” The letters explained that due to the cost and frequency of repairs, the company made the decision to terminate rental agreements early.

Torrie said 14 residents will be evicted by the end of April, and 90 more trailers will be evicted on June 30. She said residents are not eligible for assistance through the Saskatchewan Housing Corporation and other organizations because they own their homes. She added that a pro-bono law firm she contacted decided not to take up her case.

Torrie said Glen Elm isn’t just a retirement community, but a place to raise a family. She said the nearby Dr. George Ferguson School has been an invaluable resource for her two sons, who both have special needs.

“Please help us stay,” she said. “These are my children, my friends, my family. We have nowhere else to go.”

Janice Hedley, who is also a member of the Glen Elm Trailer Court Association, said she hopes the community can be saved.

“Glen Elm was my playground in the ’60s and ’70s. I retired here five years ago and thought this would be my forever home,” Hedley said.

“I invested all my savings in my trailer to pass on to my son for his inheritance, just like we all do. We set money aside and hope to leave our kids something.”

Hedley said Glen Elm Properties expects its tenants to have their trailers moved, yards cleaned up and utilities and taxes paid.

“Where’s 90-plus trailers going to go in three months when we can’t list them with the realtor? They are banned from listing our trailers now,” Hedley said.

Hedley added that tenants have been forced to try to sell their trailers through websites like Facebook and Kijiji, which she said hasn’t been successful.

She said Glen Elm Properties told her that there are lots available in North Battleford, but said the costs to move there exceed the $10,000 offered by Glen Elm.

“I will not be leaving my home on June 30. The bills can come for me and my oxygen tanks because my lot rent is being paid on time, my city taxes are paid on time through the (tax installment payment plan service) program and my utilities are paid on time,” Hedley said.

“I am not leaving. I will die in my home.”

Council floated several ideas as to how to address the issue, even considering designating Glen Elm as a heritage site, but councillors were told by the city solicitor that the city had no way of stopping the eviction in a timely manner.

Mayor Chad Bachynski said it was “incredibly difficult” to hear the stories of Glen Elm residents, and said the city will do its best to help, though he acknowledged the issue lies mostly outside the city’s jurisdiction.

The city will host an information session on Thursday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., outlining options for Glen Elm residents.

“There’ll be a good chance to try and connect folks with some services and facilitate some of that dialogue,” the mayor said. “It’s something that we’re going to try and help wherever we can.”

“The city will be there not just to co-ordinate, but we will provide details on how to change property tax ownership and return water meters,” said city manager Niki Anderson.

Anderson said the Regina Housing Authority, Regina Food Bank, Mobile Crisis Services, SaskPower, SaskEnergy and Family Service Regina will be in attendance at the information session.

The city has also been in ongoing talks with the provincial government as it searches for solutions.