On June 11 2024, tenants from the Park Beach Tenant Collective (PBTC), members of the Vancouver Tenants Union, and supporters gathered outside Plan A Real Estate Services’ offices in downtown Vancouver to bring attention to alleged mistreatment by the property company – who have recently become their landlord.
Outside their offices, PBTC members spoke about their experiences of having their privacy infringed upon, enduring consistent harassment, and demanded that two no-fault evictions be dropped.
The tenants also came to deliver a demand letter to Anoop Majithia, director of Plan A. PBTC and their supporters were met with hostility upon their arrival. Two security guards and eight police officers arrived at the building promptly to surveil the rally. Security and police then collaborated to stop tenants from delivering the collective letter to the office’s front door. Instead, the enlarged demands were taped to Plan A’s window and secondary entrance.
“We were pretty certain they were still in there,” said Ben Ger, an organizer with the Vancouver Tenants Union. “They told us they didn’t work there, stood in our way, and were quite rude, but the tenants were not intimidated.”
Ger explained that members of the PBTC had visited and spoke with Plan A representatives in the office a few weeks prior to the rally, in response to Plan A threatening to withhold keys from tenants after a planned lock change.
The seven demands presented in the tenants’ collective letter are:
- End the Illegal Evictions: retract the illegal eviction notice sent to Paula
- Retract the eviction threat to Genevieve and allow her to continue living in the building with her dog, Dodi
- Remove surveillance cameras in the building, which were nonconsensually installed by Plan A
- End the constant harassment of tenants
- Cease harassment of Marie and Pete over their tenancy status, both tenants have been living in their unit for over a decade
- Cease undue solicitation of tenants’ personal information
- Retract legal threats from tenants and issue a written apology for vexatious litigation
“They told us they didn’t work there, stood in our way, and were quite rude, but the tenants were not intimidated.”
Ben Ger, from the Vancouver Tenant’s Union
This comes at a time where approximately 80% of West End residents are renters and the area is facing an increase in development and gentrification. Plan A, who owns at least 230 units across downtown Vancouver, is explicit about their profit maximization approach to building management and ownership. One-bedroom units ranging from $2,250 to $3,000 in monthly rents are listed on their website, well above what any working-class individual in Vancouver can comfortably afford. The model is simple: acquire a building or condo, find any excuse to evict the current tenant, and then rent out the unit at or above “market rate.”
Tenants at Park Beach Manor also face eviction threats due to pet ownership, which they claim the previous landlord’s had verbally agreed to, and having so-called “unregistered” tenants in units. Park Beach units have been advertised and listed as “pet friendly” since Plan A purchased the building.
Paula Payot, a member of PBTC, is one of those tenants facing eviction due to their landlord accusing them of harboring an illegal tenant in their unit: their partner. Payot lives with a disability, which requires them to have their partner’s support during periods of distress. Moreover, Payot stated that they should be able to have their partner, and any other guests, in the building or their unit whenever they consent. When trying to speak to Plan A about their situation, the company instead forced a unit inspection on Payot. However, Plan A chose to cancel the inspection on the day it was supposed to go ahead and immediately issued an eviction notice instead.
“I was just shocked… they didn’t give me a chance to even really explain anything directly to them in person,” Payot told The Mainlander. “Plan A didn’t even acknowledge my experience with my disability, even though I was fully transparent about my situation.”
This isn’t the first time Plan A has been in the spotlight for their unethical management practices. In 2023, Plan A was fined $10,000 by the RTB for the illegal eviction attempt of a tenant for alleged caretaker use. The Vancouver Tenants Union recently published a thread on X detailing a decade of Plan A’s mistreatment of tenants.
Payot added, “Ultimately, I see that they’re doing all this work to push people out, because they don’t see us as people that live there. I’ve made a home and they see us as a dollar sign, and that our units can make more profit than what we currently pay now.”
What’s Next?
Plan A’s Majithia has threatened legal action against the tenants for defamation of character. But tenants believe that this response is just a sign that their pressure is working. Across Canada, landlords like Majithia have used the legal system to retaliate against tenants who have collectively organized. A recent example includes the Cucurull family in Montreal, who have sought legal injunctions against their tenants’ attempts to release public statements. The Mainlander previously reported on a legal loophole a Vancouver landlord attempted to weaponize against tenants.
“We are not stopping our fight for the right of quiet enjoyment of our living space, the right to not have our tenancies threatened, and we are committed to fighting for housing justice,” says Marie Weeks, another PBTC Member and tenant of Park Beach Manor.
To stay updated on the Park Beach Tenants fight or get involved in the union’s West End Chapter, PBTC have set up a website and a sign-up link.