MARKET TEMPTS RENTERS TO CREATE GROW-OPS

'It Proves Again, How Little Power We, As Landlords, Have.'

Randi Dewhirst, 100 Mile House resident, and owner of a rental property in
the Chilliwack area, knows all too well difficulties landlords may face
these days, with strict landlord"tenant rules regulating the eviction
process and owner access to their rented property.

As she spent a week disposing of pot plants and other evidence of illegal
horticulture in her rental, she came to realize how the present system
enhances the possibility of rented homes being turned into marijuana grow
operations.

Dewhirst's Fraser Valley home is the one she and her husband lovingly
shared for 16 years, and one that holds many memories for her. For the
third time in as many years, she has faced the expense and aggravation of
cleaning up her rental after tenants had used it for the purpose of growing
pot. The cleaning and repair bill topped out at $2,700, a claim that her
insurance company won't touch, as it was a result of a grow-op.

She considers herself lucky this time, as it's not uncommon for costs to go
as high as $20,000 to $30,000, after rot and mold has found its way into
interior walls.

Dewhirst found evidence of a drug processing area in the basement and
damage in the garage, that appeared to have served as the grow room.

'It's not just the damage from the growing that's the problem,' she said.
'These people just don't care about the house. My place was so filthy from
grease and dirt that when you flipped a light switch, you couldn't tell
whether the bulb was lit or not.'

Dewhirst was alerted to a possibility of there being something suspicious
with her tenants when a Valley landscape contractor phoned and asked if
she'd like her knee high grass cut.

Soon after, the tenants unexpectedly abandoned the house, just two days
after paying the next month's rent.

'It's just typical,' she said.

The popularity and demand for B.C.'s reported high-grade weed has served as
enough temptation to lure a record number of people into the lucrative, but
illegal trade.

According to Dewhirst, there has been a reported 300 per cent raise in the
establishment of grow-ops in Chilliwack within the last 12 months, with
most popping up in rental homes.