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SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
Tenants of a building owned by the Union of Northern Workers (UNW) are locked in a legal battle with their landlord that has been raging since late last spring - and it's all over a fence.

Michele LeTourneau stands beside a fence that blocks what used to be the sidewalk from the street to her apartment in the Union of Northern Workers building on 52 Street. - Laura Busch/NNSL photo

The landlord is refusing to open up a fence that was built to protect employee vehicles and the building from vandalism, leaving tenants with few options other than walking through an unlit and arguably unsafe back alley to access their apartments.

"Every time I come home from work I break every common-sense rule of self-protection from rape," said resident Michele LeTourneau.

The UNW building on 52 Street in downtown Yellowknife has eight suites that all face the back alley, which LeTourneau says is frequented by loiterers.

"Open up the fence," said LeTourneau. "I can respect their desire to protect their property, but at this point, protecting their tenants should be more important."

Another tenant, Kathryn Carriere, is also speaking up about safety concerns.

"The issue is that they have refused to give us a safe exit from that building," Carriere said. "And it's scary. It's really scary ... if you don't go when there are other people around."

The trouble started last March, when the neighbouring Aurora Village building had an "environmental disaster," said LeTourneau. Both of the fuel tanks for the building spilled oil in between the two buildings.

"As the hole (made by an excavation attempt) grew bigger and bigger, eventually that area was fenced off and blocked our only access to the rear of the building, which is how you access the apartments."

This leaves tenants with two options: either trespass through the Aurora Village parking lot, where large tour buses often idle and which is poorly lit; or walk around the block to the alley, which is also dark and icy in the winter, said LeTourneau.

"It's quite treacherous," said LeTourneau, adding that she has fallen multiple times in the alley. "One woman was accosted (on the way to her apartment)."

Carriere got fed up with the situation and applied to the NWT rental officer to order the landlord to provide a temporary walkway on the west side of the building until the walkway on the east side of the building can be repaired. Rental officer Hal Logsdon granted the order on Jan. 17. The UNW has since appealed, and the matter is now before the Supreme Court of the NWT.

When Carriere, LeTourneau and two other concerned tenants attended court last Friday, the defense lawyer for the UNW requested a 6-week adjournment.

"My understanding is they want to depose the current director of finance and administration - who is also essentially our landlord," said LeTourneau. "While in court, the judge ... stated twice that the order has not been stayed so it's an enforceable order."

The case has been adjourned to April 13, when a trial date will be set, said Carriere.

"They're just delaying it hoping that Northern Disaster (Services) will get (the east side) fixed before they have to make any changes," she said.

When the women approached the rental officer about how the order could be enforced, they hit another wall.

"It doesn't seem like there is actually any mechanism to do that," said LeTourneau. "If it was a financial order, there would be a mechanism, but because we are talking about a fence, there is no way to enforce it."

Carriere said after she won the initial hearing and the UNW was ordered to provide the tenants with the walkway, she sent an e-mail to the rental officer asking what to do to ensure they complied. The response she received was that the landlord indicated they would willingly comply.

"I feel like I'm being bullied by the union," she said.

There is an option to file an application that would have rent be paid to the rental office until such time as the landlord did comply with the order, said Carriere.

"But when we went to see (the rental officer) Friday after court to find out how it could be enforced, he really couldn't tell us," said Carriere.

Yellowknife rental officer Hal Logsdon also declined to comment, saying he was uncomfortable discussing the case since it is under appeal. Matthew Smillie, UNW director of finance and administration, declined to comment on the issue, saying the matter is currently before the courts.

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