More than 100 Montrealers mobilized midday on Wednesday to call for an end to short-term rentals in Hochelaga.
Meeting at the corner of Rues Chambly and Ontario E, they decried that a new residential building was taking away housing from the neighbourhood to rent on Airbnb, where three units are listed for over $200 a night. Landlord and Airbnb operator Strawberry Stays did not respond to a request for comment from CKUT.
Protestors also expressed anger at the borough of Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, which they say knowingly allowed the building to continue despite a 2023 bylaw banning short-term rentals, outside those within one’s primary residence. When reached by CKUT, the borough said they’d flagged the property to Revenu Quebec last December, as the power to verify residency lies with the province.
But the people at Wednesday’s protest say they’d like to see the borough take stronger action, not just against the building but a housing crisis that’s pricing working class renters out of the borough.
