The group has also lobbied MLAs to consider introducing rent control<\/a> in Alberta.<\/p>\n Abi Martin, one of ACORN\u2019s Calgary chapter chairs, said Friday\u2019s rally targeted unsafe and unsanitary living conditions experienced by many of the city\u2019s renters.<\/p>\n Martin, who uses they\/them pronouns, said renters have had to endure pest infestations, bed bugs and mould issues.<\/p>\n A landlord licensing system would give bylaw officers more authority to strengthen provincial health code standards and safety regulations in rental units, they said, adding a landlord licence would be similar to a business licence.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m a business owner,\u201d said Martin, who operates a cleaning business. \u201cI have a business licence and insurance. I do my due diligence . . . and landlords need to step up and do the same.\u201d<\/p>\n Abi Martin with ACORN Calgary speaks with media during a rally outside Calgary City Hall on Friday, February 20, 2026.<\/p>\n Some municipalities in Canada have introduced a landlord licence or registry, including multiple cities in Ontario.<\/p>\n The City of Brampton is piloting a Residential Rental Licensing program<\/a> that requires owners of rental properties with one to four units to receive a licence from the city, according to the municipality\u2019s website.<\/p>\n Also in Ontario, Hamilton\u2019s city council recently voted to make permanent a rental-housing licensing pilot program, despite complaints from landlords that it would add red tape. According to Hamilton media reports, the program was aimed at ensuring minimal health and living standards were being upheld in three parts of the city with heavy concentrations of post-secondary students.<\/p>\n In Alberta, both Calgary and Edmonton require landlords to obtain business licences. Edmonton requires a rental accommodation business licence<\/a> to ensure rental units are well maintained, while Calgary landlords are required to obtain a business licence in the category of \u201capartment building operator\u201d if they own or operate three or more units in an apartment building, according to the city\u2019s website.<\/a><\/p>\n While the Alberta Tenancy Act and Minimum Housing and Health Standards fall under provincial jurisdiction, Martin argued the Alberta government hasn\u2019t been responsive to ACORN\u2019s advocacy in the past, pointing to their previous lobbying for rent control. Thus the idea of rallying out front of city hall.<\/p>\n \u201cThey (the province) don\u2019t listen or show up for us, so we\u2019re calling on the local government to implement local systems,\u201d they said.<\/p>\n In response to a request for comment, the office of Dale Nally, Alberta\u2019s minister of Service Alberta and red tape reduction, said there are already strong legal protections in place for renters.<\/p>\n \u201cUnder Alberta\u2019s Residential Tenancies Act, there are clear rights and responsibilities for both landlords and tenants,\u201d his office wrote. \u201cThis includes the requirement that landlords ensure dwellings must meet public health and safety standards.\u201d<\/p>\n Nally\u2019s statement added that if renters are concerned about the health and safety of their dwelling, they may consider contacting local authorities, or escalate their case to the residential tenancy dispute resolution service.<\/p>\n But Cole Bowkett, who was among those picketing on Friday, said a landlord licensing system would help keep landlords in Calgary accountable.<\/p>\n \u201cIt would make it so the landlords can\u2019t make excuses anymore,\u201d he said. \u201cIt would hold them to a certain standard, similar to restaurants and whatnot. It wouldn\u2019t make sense to go eat somewhere that has a bunch of rats and bugs in it, so why would you want to live somewhere with a bunch of rats and bugs in it?\u201d<\/p>\n Bowkett said he\u2019s lived in the same downtown-area property for three years and called the state of his rental building \u201cdeplorable.\u201d He said he pays $2,000 monthly in rent, electricity and pet fees.<\/p>\n \u201cThe counters are falling apart, pipes are bursting yearly at this point in the wintertime,\u201d he said. \u201cWe don\u2019t really have proper insulation so we\u2019re lucky if it stays above 10 C inside. It\u2019s gotten to the point where I can\u2019t just sit around doing nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n Mayor Jeromy Farkas said his office had been in touch with organizers Friday and is \u201calways interested in engaging\u201d with various advocates on ways to provide more housing stability and certainty.<\/p>\n \u201cI haven\u2019t looked into the fine details of what they\u2019re specifically requesting of council to do, and whether that may or may not be within our authority under the Municipal Government Act, but I\u2019m very much looking forward to continued conversations with them,\u201d he said, after an unrelated news conference.<\/p>\n![\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/4ee682250783893678293514b1dbfa94.jpeg\"\/)
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