LANDLORDS NEED PROTECTION

Editor, The Star, Sir,

The attention being paid to illegal marijuana production operations
in our province is increasing - as are the operations - yet
residential rental owners continue to be buffeted by governments and
courts which limit and restrict the ability of landlords to avoid or
evict those who break the law.

The BC Supreme Court overturned a decision by a Residential Tenancy
Arbitrator which upheld a landlord's attempt to evict a tenant for
growing marijuana. The Judge ruled that no "serious" damage had been
caused, so the tenant could remain. The Judge's conclusion is
reinforced by a statement on the Residential Tenancy Office's web
site which reads: "If a tenant's illegal activity is causing no
damage to the landlord or tenants and is not likely to cause any risk
or damage, the landlord may not be successful in ending the tenancy
on this ground."

The City of Surrey has passed a Bylaw providing for landlords to be
fined $5,000, plus be forced to pay up to $2,500 in policing costs if
a marijuana grow operation is discovered in their property. Yet the
Ontario government has seen fit to enact a regulation that permits
rental owners to evict tenants who "produce, traffic in or possess"
illegal drugs with only ten days' notice.

Residential rental owners are not the cause of the marijuana growing
problem in BC. Residential rental owners are not responsible - or
able - to solve this problem. Residential rental owners are not the
accomplices of marijuana growers; they are the victims.

Our new government needs to make a clear and emphatic policy
statement that marijuana grow operations are not welcome in our
Province and that landlords who attempt to evict grow operators will
be supported in their efforts, not vilified.

AL KEMP, CEO, Rental Owners and Managers Association of British Columbia