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Waterloo City Council is asking the Ontario government to reconsider Bill 4, the bill to amend rent legislation, because of the effects the bill will have on landâ€" mtamnh.thecityandthemucuon' Council passed the recommendation af: ter a delegation representing area landâ€" lords outlined some of the problems landâ€" lords and tenants would face if Bill 4 is W% du'wAnoci ation, told council that Bill 4 will have a devastating impact on area landlords. "Some of our members stand to loose Basic data: Statistics Canada *Latest data for 1990 Dump rent bill, Waterloo tells province January is a peak month for sick days, with men having more time off than women. Average time off due to iliness: Hours per e s . . qvea _ Lanbeah es WelFZ e ns ’*\“1“ e mures 00. S prm e es s yB . ,:i:s.-s:sr-':;&\-;:>5,4:::::::s:&%z;:§:§ thousands of dollars and some stand to just let this bill pass." loose their entire life savings, their buil _ The bill will also have an impact on dings,and in some cases, even their homes provincial taxes, said Eby, because the iffllemnndBflHiswant” province will be forced to make the necesâ€" The bill, which will freeze rent increases sary repairs at the expense of taxpayers, for two years and prevent landlords from and in some cases, the province will have n'uix:rnrentltowfirapihlm to buy buildings that landlords have will have an impact on tenants, said vdhd-;zfrm Eby, because landlords will be unable to “hndl.ndmi]ln'tg:mmwtheir afford repairs to their buildings. pockets out i money that “Yourcity:{l' be faced with many many is needed to do major repairs. Under the wmummmhm,m. present system, they have to go to a bank ants complaining that the lord won‘t . and borrow the money and then apply for a buy them a new stove or fridge, won‘t rent increase to pay back the loans. But replace the leaking roof, won‘t replace the banks won‘t lend money under this system, aging balconies and so on. I realize you get 80 landlords will have to walk away from those complaints now, but if you think you _ buildings that need repairs." have maintenance standard problems now, _ So far, said Eby, landlords have stopped e Water fight sions. I want to assess these increases fairly and I want all sides aired fairly." "Let‘s face the realities of the ‘90s," Forwell told council, "and let‘s realize that water is a diminishâ€" ing resource and the law of supply and demand dictates that the price of it will go up." The city is currently switching to a system of development charges to make growth pay for itself and the region is also moving towards a similiar But Forwell, in an uncharacteristically lengthy rebuttal to the report, chastized its authors for "reducing the issues to numbers and percentages." "We‘re dealing with more than numbers here, we‘re dealing with political philosophies and deciâ€" of the bill for support services for council, the chairman, the chief administrative office, and the clerk, finance, legal and human resource departments, bringing regional budget down by more than four per cent. just let this bill pass." The bill will also have an impact on provincial taxes, said Eby, because the province will be forced to make the necesâ€" sary repairs at the expense of taxpayers, and in some cases, the province will have WATERLOO CHRONICLE, WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 1991 â€" PAGE as (Continued from page A1) At the end of the debate, council agreed to refer the controversial report to city stafl, who would then be requested to meet with regional staff to discuss the issues the report raised. Seiling went on to tell council that there were "no secrets" involved in rising water rates. In fact, he said, part of the cause for the increase was a conscious political decision to get mid of hidden subsidies in the rates. Regional Chairman Ken Seiling echoed Forwell when he stood up to speak in the region‘s defence Seiling said he wasn‘t even aware of the report until Forwell faxed him a copy that afternoon. Another factor contributing to the increasing rates, said Forwell, is the added cost of water conservation measures, something the residents want and should be willing to pay for "Of the $1.95 increase, 16 cents went to water conservation programs. Just Waterloo‘s conserva tion programs added three cents to the regional bill." Waterloo will send its recommendation to the Ontario government. If enough cities do the same, says Eby, the province will be forced to take notice. The City of Kitchener passed a similar recommendation tion in Ontario because of Bill 4, which along with the recession, has forced some construction companies out of business. What Eby and his association would like is a chance to work out an agreement that would be "fair and equitable" to landlords as well as tenants. He admitted the rent review system is too complex and costly and he agreed to a cap on future rents until &n agreement could be worked out with the about $500 million in proposed construc 13 King St South (at Eo) Waterioo use T tDL