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The numbers suggest the city has little recourse against vacant property owners who refuse to pay up, said United Firefighters of Winnipeg treasurer Adam Smithson.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe numbers clearly show that the current enforcement process is not working,\u201d Smithson said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s going to need multiple levels of government, possibly, that are required to step in here. But, someone has to do something here because it\u2019s not getting any better.\u201d<\/p>\n
The city called upon the province in October 2024 to amend legislation so fire protection service fees could be charged to the owner\u2019s property tax bill, similar to unpaid water and waste fees.<\/p>\n
No such changes have been introduced, meaning if an owner does not pay, the city\u2019s options are largely limited to collections or legal action \u2014 which can be slower, more expensive and less reliable, said Coun. Evan Duncan, who chairs the property and development committee.<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t MIKAELA MACKENZIE \/ FREE PRESS FILES<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n Coun. Evan Duncan said the city’s options are limited in collecting fines.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not opposed to chasing them through the courts, to be honest, I think it\u2019s a good signal to send. But, it sure would be helpful if the province would acknowledge our request and allow us to do this,\u201d said Duncan (Charleswood-Tuxedo-Westwood).<\/p>\n \u201cAt the end of the day, if we want to be taken seriously, we have to have the tools in place to nail these guys. There\u2019s a bunch of bad actors out there that need to be held accountable\u2026 if they can\u2019t pay their tax bills, we\u2019ll take over that property for them.\u201d<\/p>\n Under the city\u2019s current enforcement system, property owners can be fined $10,250 for the first fire response, $20,500 for the second, $30,750 for the third and $51,250 for subsequent responses.<\/p>\n Previously, the WFPS would charge owners for the full cost to fight fires on their properties, but the strategy failed to reduce the number of blazes.<\/p>\n In total, the fire service has issued 202 vacant fire invoices since 2023, but 52 of them were either waived or voided.<\/p>\n \u201cI feel if it\u2019s only 14 people paying out of 150, it doesn\u2019t make much sense.\u201d<\/p>\n Property owners can request a waiver the first time they are fined for fire protection services. Those requests are then reviewed by a committee, which renders a decision. Voided incidents are those in which an invoice was created, but it was later determined the fire did not meet the criteria to result in a fine, a WFPS spokesperson said.<\/p>\n Former city councillor and lawyer John Prystanski has represented multiple clients who have contested fines imposed on them following fires inside vacant properties.<\/p>\n In most cases, his clients were successful in their attempts to see the charges waived or voided. But in some instances, they have been left on the hook.<\/p>\n \u201cI pay every month and I\u2019ve never missed anything, so it\u2019s really frustrating (that others are not paying),\u201d said Maria Suzuki, who was fined approximately $100,000 after a series of 2023 fires inside a vacant home on Elgin Avenue she was renovating.<\/p>\n The property eventually suffered so much damage that it was subject to an emergency demolition.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
Suzuki is one of the few property owners who has actually complied with the resulting fines. She made a lump sum payment of about $40,000 and is now on a two-year payment plan that costs her $2,800 every month.<\/p>\n She expects to make her final payment next May, and is looking forward to putting this nightmare behind her.<\/p>\n \u201cThis really caused me a lot of stress, obviously,\u201d she said. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t feel fair, but it is each and every one\u2019s choice (to pay their fines), so I want to make the right choice. But, I feel if it\u2019s only 14 people paying out of 150, it doesn\u2019t make much sense.\u201d<\/p>\n Prystanski, who represents Suzuki, said her situation exemplifies how the current enforcement process is unbalanced.<\/p>\n \u201cObviously, it\u2019s not effective,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019re going to have a situation sort of like the hamster\u2019s wheel. We\u2019re running and trying to catch up to something that we\u2019re never going to get to.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t Prystanski said Suzuki was an attentive and responsible property owner who fell victim to repeated break-ins and suspected arson through no fault of her own.<\/p>\n He argued the city must have a more robust process to assess individual cases to determine whether fines are warranted. That way, people like Suzuki do not become discouraged from investing in neighbourhoods where there is a desperate need for housing.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen we put the responsibility solely on the property owner, and not the deviants, then we have an imbalance and we\u2019re never going to solve this problem,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Suzuki said she is unlikely to buy and renovate another home in the inner city, fearing she could once again see it destroyed by flames.<\/p>\n tyler.searle@freepres.mb.ca<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t Tyler Searle Tyler Searle is a multimedia producer who writes for the Free Press\u2019s city desk. A graduate of Red River College Polytechnic\u2019s creative communications program, he wrote for the Stonewall Teulon Tribune, Selkirk Record and Express Weekly News before joining the paper in 2022.\u00a0Read more about Tyler<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Tyler produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber<\/a>.<\/p>\n Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.<\/p>\n \t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tRUTH BONNEVILLE \/ FREE PRESS FILES
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\nMaria Suzuki\u2019s property eventually suffered so much damage after multiple fires it was subject to an emergency demolition. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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