{"id":7705,"date":"2025-11-26T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-11-26T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/?p=7440988"},"modified":"2025-11-26T06:00:00","modified_gmt":"2025-11-26T14:00:00","slug":"im-fighting-it-vernons-tiki-village-motel-resident-wins-reprieve-at-tenancy-branch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inhome\/news\/7705\/im-fighting-it-vernons-tiki-village-motel-resident-wins-reprieve-at-tenancy-branch\/","title":{"rendered":"‘I\u2019m fighting it’: Vernon’s Tiki Village motel resident wins reprieve at tenancy branch"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Almost a week after residents at the Tiki Village Motor Inn were issued immediate eviction notices, some guests are staying put, arguing the motel had no right to kick them out in the first place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Faced with impending homelessness, Tiki Village resident Brenda Rutherford filed an appeal with the BC Residential Tenancy Branch and won a short-term reprieve, granting her the right to stay put until a hearing in mid-December.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m fighting it, I\u2019m getting tired of being pushed around by these landlords,\u201d Rutherford told iNFOnews.ca. \u201cIf we have to leave in seven days, what am I going to do?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rutherford has lived at the well-known Vernon motel since August and pays $1,050 a month for a room, which has an ensuite bathroom and a kitchenette. She\u2019s got a freezer and a small washing machine that drains into the sink. The room has a decent-sized balcony that overlooks the pool, which appears to have been devoid of water for years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 57-year-old shares the room with her cat and dog, and says she\u2019s been happy there and hasn\u2019t had any issues with her room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Until Nov. 19 when Rutherford and dozens of other tenants were issued an \u201cemergency notice to evacuate.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The notice says that a fire inspection \u201cofficially deemed\u201d the motel \u201cunsafe\/uninhabitable\u201d due to hazardous electrical conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe inspector’s findings indicate that the unit currently presents a serious and immediate risk to health and safety, and therefore cannot be lawfully occupied,\u201d the notice reads. \u201cYou are required to vacate the unit immediately for your own safety and to comply with the inspector’s order.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"|\"
The eviction notice pinned the motel’s office door. BEN BULMER\/iNFOnews.ca<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The notice appears to point the blame at the \u201cinspector’s order,\u201d however, the City of Vernon says it didn\u2019t issue orders to evict residents or close the building.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur directives have focused solely on ensuring that fire code violations and safety concerns are properly addressed and corrected,\u201d City of Vernon spokesperson Jessica Hewitt said in an emailed statement last week. \u201cDue to inaction by the property management representative, our Fire Prevention Officer issued fines in late October and early November 2026 in accordance with municipal bylaws.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The City wasn’t the only one to fine the motel over its conditions. A recent WorkSafeBC penalty notice<\/a> highlighted violence, mould and rodent feces, while issuing a $1,250 fine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When iNFOnews.ca<\/a> stopped by on Nov. 25, there appeared to be very few people still living at the Tiki Village. The office was locked, and most rooms appeared empty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rutherford says she thinks most people didn\u2019t realize they could appeal through the Residential Tenancy Branch and left. She estimates maybe half a dozen refused to budge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whether Rutherford is successful at the Tenancy Branch remains to be seen, but it does appear she has some rights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Residential Tenancy Branch does not apply to vacation or travel accommodation being used for vacation or travel purposes. However, if the accommodation is rented under a tenancy agreement, the Residential Tenancy Branch applies,\u201d reads a Residential Tenancy policy guideline booklet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rutherford paid a month’s damage deposit and a pet deposit and had been paying her rent monthly. Her situation appears to fit into the definition of a tenant under the legislation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"|\"
The Tiki Village’s pool hasn’t seen water in a while. BEN BULMER\/iNFOnews.ca<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Under normal circumstances, a landlord wanting to evict a tenant to demolish or convert a rental unit has to give a tenant four months’ notice and pay them one month’s compensation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Rutherford, the company that owns the Tiki Village, Vermex Investments, did neither of those things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When reached, Tiki Village manager Regina Warkentin said she couldn\u2019t say anything and referred iNFOnews.ca<\/a> to \u201chead office\u201d before hanging up. She didn\u2019t reply when asked for a number for \u201chead office.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Calls to another phone number weren’t answered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The motel and\u00a0six nearby homes are currently up for sale<\/a> as part of a land assembly for $6-million. It’s being pitched as the site for a multifamily development with 180 apartment units.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"|\"
Vernon’s Tiki Village Motor Inn. BEN BULMER\/iNFOnews.ca<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A few doors down from Rutherford, resident Sherry Campbell has also stayed put.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She says she felt hopeless when she got the eviction notice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not easy being in this kind of position,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Luckily, Campbell has a lead on a place to move into in December and has borrowed her son\u2019s car to enable the move.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She worries about some of the others who have stayed put, but don\u2019t have any support. They are isolated in their rooms with a very uncertain future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

People also scrambled to move their stuff quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Campbell said in one room, the tenant put a note on the dresser saying not to throw it away, and that they would be back to get it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s so sad,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She also says there is no security, and some of the empty rooms have now been broken into.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While Rutherford has won a temporary stay until her Residential Tenancy Branch hearing she doesn\u2019t know where she will go if it’s not successful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prices are high, and it’s very difficult to find anything affordable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs soon as you tell them you’re on disability\u2026 the chances of getting a place here are nil,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI’m fighting for my rights, and I don’t care. I believe I have the right to do that.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It’s not clear if the motel had the right to immediately evict the residents.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":292,"featured_media":7706,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"guid":"","source":"","byline":"","published":"","updated":"","_infotelid":"","_prepressid":"","_multisite_post_sync":"","_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1680,541,543],"tags":[],"region":[322,323,324,325],"class_list":["post-7705","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-local","category-topnews","region-kamloops","region-kelowna","region-penticton","region-vernon"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inhome\/news\/7705\/im-fighting-it-vernons-tiki-village-motel-resident-wins-reprieve-at-tenancy-branch\/","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"‘I\u2019m fighting it’: Vernon’s Tiki Village motel resident wins reprieve at tenancy branch","url":"http:\/\/infonews.ca\/inhome\/news\/7705\/im-fighting-it-vernons-tiki-village-motel-resident-wins-reprieve-at-tenancy-branch\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/infonews.ca\/inhome\/news\/7705\/im-fighting-it-vernons-tiki-village-motel-resident-wins-reprieve-at-tenancy-branch\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inhome\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/inhome-DSC_8965.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inhome\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/inhome-DSC_8965.jpg"},"articleSection":"Featured","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Ben Bulmer"}],"creator":["Ben Bulmer"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"iNhome","logo":""},"keywords":[],"dateCreated":"2025-11-26T14:00:00Z","datePublished":"2025-11-26T14:00:00Z","dateModified":"2025-11-26T14:00:00Z"},"rendered":"