‘Nerve-racking’: Toronto senior has been without windows in her downtown apartment for more than a month

A Toronto senior's home is open to the elements as she waits for her windows to be replaced. Allison Hurst reports on how she's preparing for a wintery blast.

With bitterly cold temperatures and a snowstorm on the way, Joyce Taylor is hoping the four heaters inside her downtown apartment unit and a big blanket are enough to keep her warm.

The 84-year-old has been without proper windows since Nov. 28, when they were removed.

“I have to have a big blanket over my bed because the heaters shut off during the night,” Taylor said.

According to the Toronto Community Housing Corporation (TCHC), which owns the building near Gerrard and Parliament Streets, the standard process of removing and replacing a window usually takes a single day.

However, 47 days later, Taylor is still waiting for new windows to be installed.

“It’s just been nerve-racking for an 84-year-old to be going through what I’m going through,” Taylor said.

Taylor said the dry recirculating air from the heaters makes it hard to breathe. She is also worried about a fire.

“I’m on the top floor, I’m handicapped, I can’t go down the stairs. If there’s no elevator, I can’t get out at all,” she said.

There’s been wood where her living room windows would be. Inside her bedroom, wood and Plexiglas have temporarily replaced the windows.

Taylor said she had to put additional tape to cover gaps, which not only let cold air in her unit but, in one instance, a squirrel.

“I thought someone had broken into my house. That’s how bad it was. Everything was all over,” she told CTV News Toronto.

It took Taylor three days to trap the squirrel.

Taylor said she doesn’t understand why the TCHC had to replace her windows during the winter.

“Why would you take them up when you know you don’t have your stuff for it?”

Taylor said she knows at least one other unit having the same issue.

The TCHC said Taylor’s building is undergoing a significant retrofit to replace windows and repair structural issues.

“This resident’s experience is unacceptable, and we apologize to Mrs. Taylor for the disruption and discomfort that she’s experienced,” the TCHC said in a statement.

The corporation cited a supply issue as the reason behind the delay in replacing Taylor’s windows.

“The supply issue should have been resolved immediately, and this was not our normal process,” the TCHC said.

Although Taylor was initially told that new windows would be in place by the end of the month, TCHC told CTV News Toronto on Wednesday night that it was working urgently with the contractor to have them installed by the end of the week.