Of course the opinions expressed by this blogger are solely mine.
You are obviously free to express your opinions. But I bet by the time you finish reading this post, you'll probably share some of my sentiments and put a couple of your two cents in the pot.
For 30 years, my mother and I lived in public housing in one of the most dangerous and obviously poorest neighbourhoods in the city. When I was younger, my friends would ask me where I lived. I would tell them and jokingly add that they'd probably already seen my area...in the news....crime news.
Yes indeed this was a neighbourhood that forced anyone entering it to fear for their safety. Except the drug dealers and gangsters who wondered the streets with money and guns. Those guys don't fear anything, except getting caught. Urine on the elevator floors was a daily occurrence. Security guards came and went, casually doing their jobs and giving only minimum effort of care and responsibility. In fact most of them were happy enough just to give parking tickets than patrol the stairwells, where some of the gang activity would go down. Thanks guys. Safe to say it was everyone for themselves. In many ways, Darwinian.
So that being said, the wise thing to do was to get out. We did. Into an area that wasn't dominated by subsidization. An affordable market-value unit to start a new, safer life. We thought we found it with Transglobe. We didn't.
Like any honeymoon, the beginning was great. Big unit. Pretty good price. Great neighbourhood. But when the vacation ended, the happiness quickly turned sour.
Problem #1: Bed Bugs! (I hear they're everywhere in Toronto)
Problem #2: Transglobe being alerted to a bed bug problem and doing only the minimum to alleviate it.
Problem #3: Promises to eliminate the source were bullshit!
IT"S BEEN OVER A YEAR AND THE BED-BUG PROBLEM IS STILL ON-GOING!
Believe it.
It's very hard to digest the fact that you pay all this money and get very little in return. I find it's a common theme these days as a whole.
But I'm not just talking about service. I'm talking about Trust. Customer appreciation. Respect!
With regards to Transglobe, I expect all three considering the rent is not cheap (especially in tough economic times).
I can safely say that I've been disappointed with Transglobe more times than I ever was in 30 years of living in public housing!
What does that tell you?
Now granted, there has been much debate and discussion about recent actions taken by the Toronto Housing Community (Toronto Star article). People are clearly not happy about what has happened. The late Al Gosling was evicted because of an apparent bureaucratic mix-up. He later died. I'll make it clear that I'm not defending or attacking the THC by any means. I only re-iterate that problems are everywhere and more often than not, it's those causing the least amount of trouble, if any, that get screwed over.
And that's my point!
I understand people aren't happy. There are problems everywhere. But I expect a certain level of satisfaction. When I call for a repair, I expect service. When I call for a bed bug complaint, I expect action! Don't get me wrong, my time spent in public housing was often riddled with shitty building conditions, fear, insecurity and expectations of failure in the system. I thought it would be different with Transglobe. As a public company, they would invest more money to take care of the tenants and the conditions of the building.
Geez was I ever naive. No such luck. Surely when you pay more, you should get more in return right? As it turns out, the problems persist....they just take on different forms.
I notified the Property Manager. Courteous enough guy, he ordered a spray. Still, bed bugs.
Notified him again. Ordered another spray. Still, bed bugs. Why?
You could say that the elimination of DDT has substantially affected the way pest control professionals deal with such problems. They don't go away as easily as they use to.
I mentioned to the Property Manager that the problem may be coming from a neighbour. Bed bugs tend to enter a unit in a variety of ways, one being through the electrical system.
He ignored me.
I mentioned again how he should investigate the surrounding tenants. Instead of wasting money contracting people to spray units, find the source of the problem and eliminate it. I get told the downstairs neighbour might be causing it. I mention it to the Property Manager.
That didn't seem to strike a chord.
Until one day I get word that a TEAM of Transglobe reps arrived at the building and headed straight to that very same downstairs neighbour in unit G1. It turns out, much has been made about that tenant. In fact, according to reports, 41 tenants within the building have signed a petition to evict the person living there. Furthermore, the unsanitary living conditions of that tenant have been very well documented! Management knows all about it. And nothing has been done? Incredible.
But this day promised action. A solution to the problem would be announced. The suffering would end. The Property Manager will see with his own eyes what a mess this has become.
Word comes down that an ultimatum was given to that tenant in G1: Clean it up or get out! This was in the autumn of 2009. We're now entering February 2010 and nothing has been done. The tenant is still living there. Bed bugs are still there too. No solution in sight. Disappointed and disgusted with Transglobe's lack of balls. Shameful.
You want to live in filth, do it. But when that filth spreads and starts affecting clean and innocent people, that's where I draw the line. It's the obligation of the Company to do something about it. If you have proof that a tenant is not living up to standards and breaking the rules, take action.
For the past year my mom, God bless her, has been suffering with bites, not to mention rheumatoid arthritis and now sciatica. The latter probably caused by having to move furniture out of the way multiple times for the spray to be effective. Duct tape has been used to seal up the cracks in the wall and plug outlets. The bedroom is virtually unused.
Transglobe is making excuses. Transglobe is ignoring the problem. Transglobe is showing no respect for the innocent, model tenants who respect the condition of their units and the health of their neighbours. In other words, obeying the rules of the signed lease.
Transglobe's inaction is unacceptable!
Transglobe is a disgrace!
I can't compare as this problem didn't come up in the past.
What I do know is that I'm all for protecting tenants' rights...the model tenants...the ones that play by the rules and don't abuse the system. I've been told that tenants aren't easily evicted. So they say.
Tell that to those who knew Al Gosling.
