Vancouver tenants say landlord is converting units into multiple rooms with makeshift walls

Two years after CTV News broke a story about a rental unit being subdivided with a cardboard wall, tenants say the same thing is happening again.

Tenants at a building in Vancouver’s West End say their landlord has converted dozens of units into short-term accommodations, subdivided with makeshift walls.

The long-term tenants, who live at Ocean Park Place on 990 Broughton St., say the influx of transient residents has brought theft and chaos to their community.

The building is owned by CAPREIT, a real estate investment trust that is publicly traded.

CTV News spoke with numerous long-term residents of Ocean Park Place, who asked to remain anonymous due to fear of losing their housing.

“Those apartments are being converted almost instantly with fake walls, no living space, just bedrooms,” one resident said.

“Three or four people crammed into a one-bedroom apartment that’s been converted into a three-bedroom apartment. That’s got to be a fire hazard. The long-term tenants are feeling marginalized, isolated, discriminated against and not wanted.”

Cardboard wall built next to stove

In 2024, CTV News reported on a similar issue at Ocean Park Place, when an American international student spoke out about safety concerns regarding a cardboard wall built right next to the stove in his unit.

• READ MORE: ‘Quite alarming’: U.S. student says Vancouver housing unit subdivided with cardboard wall

Another tenant who asked to remain anonymous told CTV News she’s the only long-term tenant on her floor.

She said the apartment conversions have made her feel unsafe, and are eroding the sense of community in the building.

“Today, I met two people on my floor,” she said. “I don’t even know who they are. I never saw them before.”

She said she contacted CAPREIT about her concerns but never received a response.

‘It’s really affecting us’

Meaghan, who asked CTV News not to use her last name, said residents consistently have packages and mail stolen.

“The laundry room is always messed up,” she said. “The elevators are always messed up, the fire alarm’s always going off.”

She added long-term residents are choosing to move out due to the persistent issues.

“The lack of security and the lack of due diligence, it’s really affecting us,” she said.

The listings are posted on sites including Locover and Harrington Housing, which advertises rooms to students and young professionals.

CTV News reached out to Harrington Housing for comment but did not receive a response.

Vancouver is no longer listed as a city on the Harrington Housing website, but four days ago, ILSC Language Schools, a local language school, posted a video on You Tube advertising accommodations through Harrington Housing at Ocean Park Place.

Councillor wants to strengthen protections

Green City Coun. Pete Fry is tabling a motion Wednesday to address this gap by introducing amendments to the city’s license bylaw.

Fry said the city is seeing an increasing number of corporate landlords operating multi-unit buildings who are finding loopholes around the city’s bylaws and the province’s Residential Tenancy Act.

“We’re seeing commercial landlords who are dodging the rules around short-term rentals and putting up residential units on short-term rental platforms like Airbnb, but also other more fringy ones, and what we struggle with as a city is to catch them,” he said.

Referring to CAPREIT’s Ocean Park Place, Fry said the use of these makeshift walls is a safety issue.

“That is the largest real estate investment trust in Canada with over $17 billion in assets,” he said. “And they’re running an operation like this. I find it unconscionable.”

Fry’s motion also looks at strengthening the city’s enforcement measures.

As per the Residential Tenancy Branch, a landlord is required to provide a tenant at least 24 hours’ notice for an inspection, therefore, the city must provide the landlord with prior notice so they can properly inform their tenant.

He said inspectors are often sent to the building, but due to the city’s 24-hour requirement, property managers often remove the partitions prior to inspectors showing up.

If Fry’s motion is successful, it would add licensing requirements for commercial and corporate landlords to adhere to.

“You know, the vast majority of landlords in the city are upstanding and fine,” he said. “It’s the bad actors that we want to have more tools to capture.”

CAPREIT’s response

In a statement to CTV News, CAPREIT said it worked with Harrington Housing at Ocean Park Place, “to serve an important yet underserved segment of the population: Students and young professionals seeking affordable, furnished housing.”

The statement added, “leases for these units have a minimum term of 31 days and are therefore not short-term tourist rentals. In practice, most units are rented to students or working professionals for the duration of a school year or work term.”

CAPREIT added, Harrington Housing, like all of its housing partners, “is required to comply with all applicable municipal bylaws, including obtaining permits for any in-suite work and adhering to the City of Vancouver’s regulations related to short-term rentals, which include business licensing and provincial registration requirements.”

City says it hasn’t issued permits

The City of Vancouver said it has not issued any permits nor has it received any applications to subdivide units at Ocean Park Place.

There is an active development permit application under review at the site for interior and exterior alterations, which includes adding two dwelling units, however, the city said, “this application is still undergoing review and no approvals have been granted.”

The city added it takes matters such as these seriously due to potential safety and fire-risk implications.

“Illegal construction or unsafe alterations, such as installing walls or creating makeshift separations, pose real fire and life‑safety risks,” the statement said.

The city said, “these changes can block required exit pathways, interfere with ventilation, or create ignition hazards.”

The city added that several city bylaws regulate building safety and occupancy and that non-compliance with these may result in enforcement measures.

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