IN THE GHETTO

Crack deals going down in the hallways, people screaming as they trip
out on crystal meth, squatters leaving their trash in the apartment
next door - this is what Kaila Chandler, 24, has put up with for the
last three years in her Waterstone complex at 8031 Colonial Dr.

But when her apartment was broken into earlier this week - her
laptop, DVD collection and even her phone gone - she decided it was
time to tell the world that yes, Virginia, Richmond has a ghetto and
it's right here at Railway Avenue and Blundell Road.

"People say 'there are no ghettos in Richmond.' I say 'are you
kidding? You haven't been to 8031 Colonial Dr.'"

She called the police, but the officers didn't leave her a card or
file number.

"They just said, 'we're here all the time.'" And Chandler had to agree.

"They're here every other night. I recognize most of them."

RCMP spokesman Cpl. Peter Thiessen confirmed police are more than
familiar with the 213-suite building.

"There are many, many, many, many entries in our system. We're well
familiar with that complex. You name it, we've been there in regards
to criminal and non-criminal incidents over the last number of years."

Making the situation even more frightening is the fact a significant
number of children live in the complex, which backs on to Grauer
elementary.

Even the landlord agrees the situation is out of control.

"There are drugs in that complex," admits Norman Cressey, whose Nacel
Properties owns the building.

He blames the situation, in part, on the on-site building managers,
whom he recently fired.

"If people aren't doing their job, you're going to have a mess.
Senior management doesn't know about it until it starts really
smelling (vacancy goes up, collections calls). By that time, the
problem's bigger than it should be."

Cressey also blames legislation that makes it difficult to kick out
bad tenants.

"The police have been there how many times and they can't do
anything, what am I supposed to do? Everything has to be proven in
law ... I'd like to go in there with sniffer dogs, but then people
like you would be all over me for violating tenants' rights."

This is not the first time Nacel Properties has been in the news.

A few years ago, the company made headlines when it tried to require
pet owners to pay a damage deposit for their pets, despite having
already signed a contract stating pets were allowed.

Nacel eventually backed down.

Also, in 1997 Richmond Fire-Rescue took the unusual step of actually
charging Nacel after it ignored a provincial fire commissioner's order.

The following year, Nacel Properties allegedly dragged its feet in
bringing in an exterminator to deal with a severe ant infestation in
its Colonial Drive complex.

David Raey, spokesman for the Richmond Poverty Response Committee, is
familiar with 8031 Colonial Dr. because he once looked to rent a
place there.

"I looked at it and thought it was no place to raise a family."

Raey believes the city should get involved in helping clean up the
place. "As Al Capone was brought down on tax laws, crack dealers are
brought down on garbage violations."

Sometimes small moves that help establish a sense of public order are
most effective, he added.

"The police have the Criminal Code, health authorities have the
Health Act, tenants and landlords have the Residential Tenancy Act,
but all of these are very cumbersome processes that require
definitive proof."

The city could make smaller gestures to help support the law-abiding
tenants in the complex, Raey suggested.

Chandler agrees, but said most of the "good tenants" are recent
immigrants, with limited English.

"I've tried to talk to some of them, but they're not interested.
They're scared, like everyone else."

The Standards of Maintenance bylaw, which is slowly wending its way
through civic bureaucracy, may be a tool in dealing with these kinds
of issues, said Coun. Rob Howard.

The bylaw was proposed by Coun. Evelina Halsey-Brandt to deal
specifically with tenants' rights regarding water, electricity and
heat, but Howard questions if the bylaw couldn't be expanded.

Meanwhile, back at 8031 Colonial Dr., Chandler, a student at
Vancouver Film School, frets over her lost laptop.

"I can't even do my work now."

Chandler said she would like to move, but she has a dog and this is
one of the few apartment complexes that allow pets.

"I feel trapped. But I really feel bad for the kids."

Cressey is determined to do his part through new management. Job
postings are prominent on the company's website.