A housing committee in the Ahuntsic-Cartierville borough says there are an astonishing number of pest and mold-infested homes in one particular low-income neighbourhood.
The study by the group Comité de Logement de l'Arrondissement — or CLAC — visited hundreds of apartments in a sprawling two square kilometre area located mainly west and south of the Sacré-Coeur Hospital, and found that nearly half of all households surveyed had people living in unsanitary conditions.
Fully four-fifths of those places surveyed were dealing with cockroaches, while others were dealing with other problems, such as bed bugs, mold, and rodents.
Many of those living in the neighborhood are recent immigrants, including some newly-arrived Syrian refugees, and the group says the city needs to be more proactive in making them aware of their rights.
One resident of the area spent almost nine years in an apartment living with black mold before he was informed the landlord had a legal obligation to deal with the problem.
"It was bad. But I'm happy I'm out of there. The kids are in better health," the man told CJAD 800 News.
Project agent Rémi Bureau also says the city needs to hire more inspectors to conduct regular checks on tenants to inspect the sanitary conditions in the apartments.
"Basically, it's that clear," Bureau says. "And just here...it's about one inspector that is free for about six hours a week to act on those problems. That's pretty close to nothing."