A Prince George man is now homeless after BC Housing offered to buy the unfinished downtown apartment building he was scheduled to move into.
Nathan Findlay put down a $725 damage deposit for unit 202 at Quebec Street House on Sept. 23. He was told he could move in on Nov. 1, and gave his notice at his former apartment. But November turned to December, then January, then February and the 36-unit building still wasn’t ready to move in.
In February, he was allowed to move his belongings into the unit, to avoid paying $200 a month in storage fees. Then on Tuesday morning he received a call from an employee of Quebec Street House owners PRP Holdings Ltd. and was told he’d need to remove his belongings from the apartment, and his damage deposit would be returned because the building is being sold.
“I’ve been staying at Airbnbs, I’ve been staying with friends. I’m almost broke. My parents have been looking after my dog for the last three months,” Findlay said. “I just about had a mental breakdown on Jan. 16. I don’t want my damage deposit back, I want a place to live.”
Findlay said when the building was listed for sale, he was assured by representatives of PRP Holdings that he and the other tenants who had paid their damage deposits would be allowed to stay.
“I’ve worked with the homeless downtown. I’ve worked with BC Housing before,” Findlay said. “How ironic, BC Housing (bought the building) and I’m homeless.”
Findlay is an outreach worker at the Prince George Needle Exchange and is a former addict who has been in recovery for four years.
“This has been really stressing me out,” he said. “My parents are worried, my friends are worried about me.”
"BC Housing takes multiple approaches to providing housing, including purchasing existing buildings. As such, we are currently in discussions with the owner of 605 Quebec St. to potentially purchase the building," a BC Housing spokesperson said in an email. "The building is currently vacant and has no occupancy permit. If BC Housing moves forward with this purchase, we will share additional information regarding future plans. We are committed to ensuring that our purchase of any building does not result in anyone being displaced to homelessness."
Peter Wise of PRP Holdings Ltd. could not be reached for comment as of Wednesday morning.
