9 owners of vacant Winnipeg properties get bills after fires, including 1 for $104K
84 fires at vacant properties last year; already 32 so far this year as of mid-April
The owners of several vacant properties are facing bills — including one for nearly $104,000 — as the City of Winnipeg begins charging owners for firefighting costs after blazes at vacant sites.
Firefighters battled a record number of vacant building fires last year, the city says, and it hopes the bills encourage owners to take steps to prevent them.
The city has issued bills to nine property owners so far, under rules that came into effect March 1.
Five of those bills are under $10,000 — ranging between $4,778.55 and $7,718.55.
Others are more significant, and range from $27,565.65 to $103,772.55, according to the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service.
Property owners receive a bill each time firefighters are called, Assistant Chief Scott Wilkinson said.
"So if there was a subsequent incident, they would be billing again," Wilkinson said.
"We certainly hope that people would take the appropriate actions after the initial fire. But more importantly, we want people to maintain those properties and secure them or rehabilitate them, prior to ever being a fire. That's the goal."
The city passed a bylaw in January that placed the cost of responding to fires at vacant buildings on to the property owners, amid a growing number of those fires.
In 2015, there were nine fires in vacant buildings. Last year saw the highest number on record, with 84.
As of April 14, there had already been 32 this year.
A January report from the City of Winnipeg says there are currently 683 vacant buildings registered in Winnipeg.
Coun. Sherri Rollins, who chairs the city's property and development committee, hopes the bills lead to change.
The city needed a "tough as nails approach to say, 'Look, if you own property … you've got to start really honouring that property and really caring for it in a way that doesn't lead to vacancy and dereliction,'" she said.
If the owner doesn't pay a bill, the city could refer it to a collection agency or could add the charges to property taxes, 90 days after the first notice.
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