By Pam Wright
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
The possibility of eviction may never end for residents at Terrace Forty apartments in Chatham.
That’s according to Chatham-Kent Legal Clinic paralegal Jeff Wilkins, following an Ontario Landlord Tenant Board (LTB) hearing Aug. 27, held to review N-13 eviction notices for 20 residents.
In January of this year, following the sale of the property in late 2025, the building’s owner issued N-13 notices for the entire building. Cash-for-Keys deals were also offered in an attempt to clear long-term tenants from the building.
But the move by Rex Brondial, who is listed as the director of the Ontario numbered company that own’s Terrace Forty, has been quashed by adjudicator Jagger Benham.
Brondial didn’t show up at the hearing, nor did he send anyone to speak on his behalf.
Wilkins called his absence reprehensible.
“For him not to show up after filing those notices is absolutely disgraceful,” the housing stability worker stressed. “It was a tactic to scare these people…but unfortunately this landlord can turn around and try to do this again.”
As of press time, The Voice was unable to reach Brondial to confirm if he is the building’s owner.
At the hearing, Benham termed the N-13 Terrace Forty applications as “abandoned.” He has yet to render a final decision on the matter, stating he may award costs to tenants.
According to Wilkins, Terrace Forty residents are happy with the hearing’s outcome but many are “waiting for the next shoe to drop.
“The fight’s not over yet,” Wilkins said. “Because we don’t know what this landlord is going to do. He could file N-13’s at any time and start the process all over again if he wants to.”
The recent LTB hearing caps a stressful eight months for Terrace Forty residents. With the help of the clinic, they’ve been fighting tooth and nail against eviction. The original N-13 deadline was May 31 and tenants celebrated when the date passed.
But two weeks later, Brondial filed the N-13 notices again, leading to the Aug. 27 court date.
Along with the N-13 notices distributed by the landlord in January, residents were presented with an information package describing the dangers of asbestos and lead within the building. They were told they needed to leave for a minimum of eight months so the work could be completed.
With the help of local councillors and the legal clinic, residents fought back. Officials called it a “renoviction scare tactic” by the landlord aimed at increasing profits by getting rid of long-term tenants paying low rent.
Led by Chatham Coun. Marjorie Crew, the Terrace Forty dilemma prompted Chatham-Kent to adopt an N-13 renoviction bylaw that will take effect Oct. 1. Under the new rules, landlords planning renovations must obtain permits from the municipality, purchase a license and pay a $500 per unit fee. Council also approved a public education campaign as well as funding to hire a licensing agent for 16 months.
When contacted by The Voice, Crew stressed the new bylaw is directed at “bad actors” only, noting there are plenty of good landlords in Chatham-Kent.
“The bylaw targets predatory landlords out to make a profit off of people who are good tenants,” Crew said, adding she’s “very proud” of the Terrace Forty residents who fought back.
“The selective intervention by council on this single building exposes a massive double standard and clear political favoritism. Where was this emergency action when thousands of other local renters were being quietly evicted and forced into paying sky-high market prices over the last few years? Council completely looked the other way until a specific group made the front page. Passing a loophole bylaw for 40 units doesn’t fix a broken housing market for the rest of us; it just proves that local politicians only care when a story threatens their public image.”