A resident at Castle Rock Family Housing says she and her children have suffered under the shadow of black mould problems for months, and adds she is not satisfied with the response of the complex's non-profit owners, the Sea to Sky Housing Society.
Karrie Thornitt is on disabilities benefits because she suffers from the condition fibromyalgia, which causes musculoskeletal pain, severe fatigue, and disturbed sleep.
She said she ended up in the emergency department at Squamish General Hospital at the end of August with breathing difficulties and was told she should not remain in her home until the mould was removed.
Her mould problem, she said, extended through her kitchen, dining area, and near her water tank.
These problem spots were not discovered simultaneously, she said, which made the situation worse.
Thornitt moved herself and her two children to the August Jack Motor Inn after she left hospital and has been there ever since, trying to resolve the issue.
She complained to the society about the initial outbreak of mould that was found, but claimed the work, which included cleaning with bleach and boarding over some areas, was inadequate.
She ended up ripping out kitchen cupboards that covered one area of mould and was told by a contractor she'd brought in herself that the cupboards themselves had been affected and not to use them again.
"It has been very frustrating for us," she added.
"I can't spend more than a short spell in the house and it has been really disruptive for my kids."
Shirley Brown, the chair of the board of Sea to Sky Housing Society, which is the only subsidized housing organization in Squamish, took issue with Thornitt's version of events and said they had done everything possible to fix the problem.
"On Aug. 22 we had a local company come in and check the mould under the sink They did a sight visit report and they said what we needed to do to remediate it and we did," she said. "She was then to return to the house Then she said her upstairs bathroom was smelly. So we arranged on Sept. 3 to have a plumber come out and two local contractors come out and they did the work on Sept. 4."
Thornitt received an eviction notice on Aug. 29, said Brown, because of the ripped out cupboards.
"[This was] with the stipulation that if the cupboards returned to the kitchen before the 17th, the eviction notice wouldn't hold," said Brown.
When told that Thornitt was concerned about the cupboards having black mould as well, Brown replied: "If that's what she's saying, that's what she's saying The cupboards were in the carport They are in the kitchen now and they're fine. She won't be evicted because the kitchen cupboards have been returned to the kitchen."
But Thornitt said they were new cupboards she'd paid for herself.
"They are brand new cupboards in the kitchen. I paid $392.08 in Home Depot. The contractor I hired took me there and we picked them out," she said.
"I gave them notice that this was what needed to be done and I gave them the opportunity to do the repairs themselves. If I needed to take it out of my income assistance money in order to move back in, then I would be taking them to arbitration for compensation. That's when I got my eviction notice," she added.
Brown feels the matter has now been settled.
"We feel that we have remediated the mould in her unit and that's where it is," she said.
Brown said she couldn't speak about the case of a previous Castle Rock tenant who moved out after similar complaints of a black mould infestation, but she added that they would be seeing Thornitt at the next meeting of the Sea to Sky Housing Society at the end of September.
Thornitt said this was the first she'd heard of the invitation, but that she was happy to get it.
