CBRM approves new licensing bylaw for shared dwellings
SYDNEY — Cape Breton Regional Municipality council has approved a new licensing bylaw for shared dwellings.
The bylaw aims to ensure the safe operation of shared dwellings in the municipality by establishing licensing requirements, clearly states obligations for owners and operators, requires ongoing yearly inspections of properties and provides the municipality enforcement mechanisms to address noncompliance, CBRM said in a news release issued Wednesday.
Council unanimously voted in favour of the bylaw during its May 14 meeting at city hall after its second and final reading.
According to a report from Peter Vandermeulen of CBRM’s planning and development department, shared dwellings are “also known as rooming, lodging and boarding houses … and typically resembles rental accommodations where sleeping rooms are rented to separate individuals, sharing communal facilities such as kitchens and bathrooms.”
Such dwellings have become increasingly common as an affordable accommodation option. But the implementation of a shared dwelling licensing bylaw “will provide the municipality with an opportunity to mandate inspection of these types of rental properties in the event of non-compliance,” Vandermeulen’s report noted.
SENDING A CLEAR MESSAGE
“With the new shared dwelling bylaw, we're sending a clear message: overcrowded and unsafe living conditions will not be tolerated,” Mayor Amanda McDougall-Merrill said in a statement. “Landlords must uphold their duty to provide safe and dignified housing for their tenants. It's not just a legal obligation; it's a moral responsibility.”
“Together, we're building a community where safety and decency are non-negotiable."
“The intention of this bylaw really is the safety component that we’re trying to achieve,” added Karen Neville, CBRM’s acting director of planning and development/senior planner. “We want to get into compliance.”
Shared dwelling owners would have to obtain a specific “shared dwelling” licence by Aug. 20. The application fee for this licence costs $200.
The release also noted that if the dwelling contains more
nd than four sleeping rooms, there is an additional charge of $50 per room.
The initial application is valid for one year, after which renewal is required within 30 days of expiration. The fee for that renewal is $100, with an extra $25 per bedroom if there are more than four bedrooms, according to the release.
More information on this bylaw, including licence requirements, application process and more, can be found at the municipality’s website (cbrm.ns.ca/cbrm-by-laws. html).
ORDERS TO VACATE
This past April, as reported in the Cape Breton Post, tenants of a rental unit at 535 Charlotte St. were ordered to vacate immediately after a fire marshal inspection on April 3 found violations of the Nova Scotia Fire Safety Act. A source who knows the property and tenants told the Cape Breton Post eight Cape Breton University students were displaced by the order to vacate.
As well, in November 2023, the Nova Scotia Office of the Fire Marshal filed seven criminal charges against the landlords of a shared dwelling at 222 Park Street for alleged safety infractions following a mid-December 2022 fire that claimed the life of an international student.
“I don’t think any of us want to see that happen again,” District 6 Coun. Glenn Paruch told council on May 14.