The YWCASA国际影视传媒檚 Supportive Housing Program is exempt from the Residential Tenancies Act, Justice Karan Shaner ruled in a court of appeal decision last week.

For that reason, the YWCA was within its rights in evicting a man and his daughters from their housing unit when one of the manSA国际影视传媒檚 guests threatened to burn the building down. The court decision notes the incident SA国际影视传媒渁ppears to have followed on the heels of a series of complaintsSA国际影视传媒� about the tenant.

The decision, which overturns a former ruling from a rental officer, deals with a man housed in a unit that the YWCA leases under its Supportive Housing Program SA国际影视传媒� a program aimed at families experiencing, or in danger of, experiencing homelessness.

The man and his family joined the program in 2018. They were accommodated in an apartment building the YWCA owned.

The family was relocated to a Northview Properties-owned building when a fire burned down the YWCA apartment building in October 2018.

When the tenant was told on Sept. 10, 2019 that he had 48 hours to vacate, he refused, despite the YWCA assuring they would provide him with housing elsewhere. The landlord had the locks changed, but allowed the YWCA access to the unit for an additional period to assist the tenant in retrieving his belongings. Still, the man gained access by force and the had to remove him from the residence.

He then filed a complaint with the rental office claiming improper eviction.

The central issue of the complaint is whether the Residential Tenancies Act (RTA) applies to transitional housing programs.

The rental officer ruled that it does and that, like most landlord/tenant relationships, an eviction notice would have to be obtained from the rental office for the eviction to be permissible.

Shaner found the rental officerSA国际影视传媒檚 decision to be SA国际影视传媒減roblematic for several reasons.SA国际影视传媒�

The judge states that the rental officer came to her decision in considering exemptions from the RTA including living accommodation to SA国际影视传媒渢emporarilySA国际影视传媒� shelter those in need and living accommodation occupied for rehabilitative or therapeutic purposes. While the rental officer found the program to be rehabilitative, she concluded that the RTA legislators were referring to SA国际影视传媒渋nstitutional environments,SA国际影视传媒� where living accommodation is secondary to the organizationSA国际影视传媒檚 main rehabilitative purpose. She said that while the transitional housing provided in this case is primarily for living accommodation and not rehabilitation.

She also determined that SA国际影视传媒渢emporarilySA国际影视传媒� implied shelter for a matter of days.

Upon the YWCASA国际影视传媒檚 appeal, Shaner ruled there is nothing to support the officerSA国际影视传媒檚 conclusion that the RTASA国际影视传媒檚 exemption is limited to institutional environments.

SA国际影视传媒淗ad the legislature intended to limit (the RTA) in this way, it would have expressly included this qualification,SA国际影视传媒� the judge wrote.

Shaner also disagreed with the officerSA国际影视传媒檚 definition of temporary.

SA国际影视传媒淐learly, it refers to arrangements that are not permanent and which are not intended to become permanent,SA国际影视传媒� Shaner stated.

SA国际影视传媒淎gain,SA国际影视传媒� she said, SA国际影视传媒渋f the drafters intended to limit SA国际影视传媒榯emporarilySA国际影视传媒� in (the act) to a matter of days, they would have said that.SA国际影视传媒�

The rental officerSA国际影视传媒檚 interpretation, Shaner said, SA国际影视传媒渨ould lead to absurd, impractical and unintended consequences.SA国际影视传媒�

She points to emergency accommodations and shelters as examples of cases where, according to the rental officerSA国际影视传媒檚 findings, occupants would hold the same rights and obligations of a tenant SA国际影视传媒渋ncluding, quite possibly, the obligation to pay rent. That is clearly not the purpose of such programs, nor the intention of the users.SA国际影视传媒�

Shaner set aside the rental officerSA国际影视传媒檚 order and ruled that the YWCASA国际影视传媒檚 Supportive Housing Program falls squarely within the exemptions specified in the RTA.