The owner of the listed building, which was devastated by Thursday’s devastating Place d’Youville fire, swears he’s been inspecting his buildings almost daily to rule out any fire risk, but says he’s considering sub-letting his apartments on Airbnb had a hard time. An entrepreneur who illegally sublet some burned-down houses said he was surprised at how much money was being made through the popular platform.
Posted at 5:00 am
Attorney Émile Benamor, who owns the burned building where several people are missing, testified in Montreal City Court on December 15 in a case in which he ran up against Montreal firefighters. Fire safety inspectors had visited another of his buildings on Rue Notre-Dame, near City Hall, a few months earlier. While trying to test a retractable fire escape, one of them fell and broke his ankle. An insult had been leveled at the owner for keeping an emergency exit in poor condition.
PHOTO EDOUARD PLANTE-FRÉCHETTE, LA PRESSE ARCHIVE
Emile Benamor, in 2014
In a sworn testimony before Judge Cathy Noseworthy, Me Benamor assured that he would do everything possible to reduce the risk of the fire. “I have my responsibilities as an owner and I take my responsibilities very seriously. These are historic buildings that I take great care of,” we hear him banging on the recording of the hearing consulted by La Presse in court.
“I start my day at my buildings at 6:30 am because I have about fifteen to inspect,” he explained, noting that the building visited by inspectors was “identical” to his other property at Place d’Youville – which would burn down three months later.
“I visit my buildings every day,” he repeated several times to the judge.
“We check that there are no more cigarettes lying there, no water is flowing. I do it every day between 6:30 and 7:30 am. On weekends I rest, but during the week I pass. »
We go through all the emergency exits to make sure they aren’t blocked, that people can get out, that the doors aren’t locked. I take any means necessary.
Émile Benamor, testifying before Judge Cathy Noseworthy
Me Benamor had stated in court that he would retain his barrister’s license but had practically stopped practicing law. “I just take care of my buildings,” he said.
In this case, the firefighters who had inspected his building on Notre-Dame Street had gone there on suspicion of the existence of a secret boarding house. However, the owner had pleaded that it was more of a non-profit organization that provided accommodation. “They have a permit, they can operate,” he said.
The judge had Émile Benamor acquitted and the indictment overturned after noting that he had quickly repaired the non-working fire escape.
Me Benamor refused to allow an interview to discuss Thursday’s tragedy. However, the lawyer representing his interests, Me Alexandre Bergevin, has assured that he is cooperating with the police investigation.
PHOTO PATRICK SANFAÇON, THE PRESS
The unstable subsoil and the risk of collapse make manual excavations too dangerous for rescue workers. For this reason, a drone and gondolas are used in this operation.
Referring to the unusual interior design of certain apartments, particularly a unit with no windows to the outside where two people who had called 911 and said they couldn’t get out died, Me Bergevin pointed out that the building had this configuration when it was bought and the authorities have never made any allegations in this regard.
Cited as a success story on Airbnb
Me Bergevin points out that tenants in the burned building are illegally subletting short-term accommodation on Airbnb. “Actions have been taken to put an end to this,” he said.
According to research by La Presse, one entrepreneur who has rented several units in the building to sublet them on short-term accommodation web platforms is Tariq Hasan, owner of lodging company Avenoir Inc., some of whose listings are always visible online. The city of Montreal also filed a complaint of insult at this address in connection with the presence of garbage last year, according to the registers of the district court.
PHOTO BY LINKEDIN
Tarik Hasan
When asked about the owner letting a contractor rent several apartments in the building at the same time, Bergevin admitted that he had allowed a tenant to sublet certain apartments for rents of a month or more, which is permitted under local regulations. However, he would have tried to get rid of this tenant when he realized that the latter was more of a short-term rental for visitors and tourists, which is illegal and caused problems for the owner.
A US podcast for Airbnb hosts titled “Short Term Rental Success Stories” featured the story of Tariq Hasan and his company in 2019. Mr. Hasan explained that he was working in software development at a company in Montreal but quit his job to focus 100% on short-term rentals on Airbnb and other similar platforms.
“I was really intrigued by this space because of the tremendous potential for cash flow,” he explained. He said he has sublet accommodation in several buildings, employs a small group of staff and spoke about the manna represented by tourists in the summer, thanks in particular to the Osheaga Festival.
“I myself was surprised by the return I got,” he said.
However, two weeks ago, Mr. Hasan complained on LinkedIn about the multinational’s recently offered service. “Customer service has deteriorated significantly. Users, especially hosts, are less satisfied with the platform,” he wrote.
Reached by La Presse on his cellphone, Mr Hasan refused to speak about the fire. “I wouldn’t know about it,” he blurted out before hanging up.