A Windsor city councillor has said people displaced by problems at an apartment building will be allowed to come home for the holidays.
Ward 3 Councillor Renaldo Agostino confirmed via his Twitter account that residents of 1616 Ouellette Avenue are allowed to return home.
"When 1616 Ouellette was shut down, our City, led by Andrew Daher, decided to play chess while everyone else was playing checkers," said Agostino. "Today, that decision paid off as the residents of 1616 are headed home for Christmas."
Andrew Daher is the City's Health and Human Services Commissioner.
https://twitter.com/RenaldoAgostino/status/1603799236046618624
Tenants at 1616 Ouellette Avenue were ordered out by the City after it received information that the building had no heat, unreliable hydro service, and other issues. There were about 120 people affected by the evacuation.
While repairs were being made, Marda Management, a privately-owned property management company, took over operating the property.
It was not immediately clear when people may be allowed to move back in and how many at a time.
Residents of the building who did not have a place to stay while the building was being repaired were offered temporary shelter at the Constable John Atkinson Memorial Community Centre, operated in a joint effort between the City and the Canadian Red Cross. An outpouring of support from the community soon followed, so much that excess provisions were diverted to the City's Homelessness and Housing Help Hub (H-4) at the former Windsor Water World.
The Atkinson Centre was closed last week as a temporary shelter, but the City said at the time that those staying there who still needed accommodations were all taken care of.