ALEX McCUAIG

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Twitter: MccuaigNews

Classic Communities may have been feted over its solution to the affordable housing problem but a growing number of condo owners say their homes have become anything but affordable.
A civil suit against Classic Communities Ltd. (CCL) and the City of Medicine Hat was filed in July by the Somerset Villas condo board, claiming damages related to alleged faulty construction of the building.
Condo board president Jason Rodgers said residents have been complaining for years about problems in the building without adequate actions from CCL.
“We started to have humidity and condensation problems almost from day one,” he said of the building that opened in 2007.
“A lot of that was attributed to it being a new building but after two years, it didn’t go away. Some of it has actually gotten worse.”
The condo board hired an engineer to check into the problem. He reported some issues with the concrete base of the structure.
“That slab is now floating and it was never designed to be a floating slab,” Rodgers said.
“It’s causing cracking, the plumbing is starting to bow and break, the ductwork is starting to pull away.”
Under the CCL financing model for its affordable housing program that’s supported by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), homeowners saw their mortgages subsidized for five years.
Rodgers now says on the eve of the end of the subsidy, legal and engineering costs are mounting for residents who will have to pay the full mortgage on a devalued home they can’t sell.
He added that some realtors won’t even list the properties.
Leading up to the lawsuit, Rodgers said residents had numerous meetings with representatives from CCL.
CCL president Murray Prokosch balked at the condo board’s estimate of up to $5 million to fix the issues at Somerset Villas, stating it can be done for about $250,000.
“It’s ridiculous those numbers,” said Prokosch.
“It’s the most bizarre thing I’ve ever seen.”
He said it’s the condo board that’s not negotiating in good faith and he wasn’t made aware of the seriousness of the complaints about the buildings until recently.
Prokosch said it’s common for new buildings to have problems with humidity and homeowners were provided with dehumidifiers.
“We don’t know the extent of the problems and they don’t seem to be telling us. They’re not cooperating,” he said.
Though president and founder of the company, Prokosch said he wasn’t personally made aware of long-term issues surrounding the development.
“I wasn’t involved with the construction side of the company. I had a partner who looked after that. How familiar he was with (the problems) — he is no longer around,” he said.
“How far back it goes — he’d be able to tell you but as far as me knowing about it, it goes back to a few months ago.”
Prokosch said once he became aware of the issues, work commenced on addressing the problems.
“We were working on it until they stopped us so, how do you fix it if they won’t let you?” he asked.
As far as the devaluation of the property, Prokosch placed the blame for that on the condo owners.
“These people have been running around town telling people their buildings are falling down and yet nothing like that has happened, nothing structural has happened,” he stated.
“They’ve caused that, not us.”
But for homeowner Dave Nichols, who lives in CCL’s Northlands Pointe development, after four years of living with mould caused by humidity, he just wants to make sure others aren’t also faced with this dilemma. 
“I’m never going to be able to sell this anyway. I’m going to have to have this for the rest of my life now,” he lamented.
Nichols said the price of the homes have gone from the initial low $200,000 range to around $150,000.
He said he, too, was told the humidity was common in newer buildings but after four years the problem is not going away.
“I just clean the mould with bleach,” he said.
Prokosch said some there have been some issues surrounding siding that has allowed water to leak in parts of the building which is being addressed.
CCL has consistently ranked in Alberta Venture magazine’s fastest-growing companies in over the past four years.
The company has also been recognized by the provincial government for contributions to sustainable housing solutions.