SASKATOON The Saskatoon Fire Department has closed 16 suites at the troubled Prairie Heights condo bulding due to unsafe and unsanitary living conditions. “Up until now we have been able to remedy the life safety issues in the building,” Fire Chief Morgan Hackl said in a news release. “The conditions in a number of suites have degraded to such an extreme state the fire department can no longer, in good conscience, allow people to live there, Hackl said. Around 12 residents will be rehoused to safe, healthy accommodations and the Ministry of Social Services has established housing plans and transportation for each person based on their unique needs, the department said.
Posted: Apr 12, 2021 4:00 AM CT | Last Updated: April 12
Inside the main entrance stairwell at Prairie Heights.(CBC)
On a warm spring morning, the problems with the Prairie Heights condo tower assault the senses.
The tangy stench of urine wafts up from the open parking area beneath the tower at 1416 20th Street W. in Saskatoon. The incessant cooing of pigeons roosting on balconies almost drowns out the traffic passing by. The ground is littered in various places with syringes, food wrappers, bird feces, discarded shoes, shirts and pieces of furniture.
Assistant fire chief Yvonne Raymer toured the property earlier this month after vandals trashed the sprinkler system, flooding seven floors.
SASKATOON Geoff Wilkie bought a condo at Prairie Heights in Saskatoon’s Pleasant Hill neighbourhood about 12 years ago. What he thought would be a great investment turned into a constant source of stress. “It’s like living in a war zone,” Wilkie told CTV News. “You go in the building and there’s needles everywhere, there’s graffiti on the wall, there’s bikes in the hallway, there’s garbage in the hallways, there’s broken doors. People use the stairwells for their toilet, people throwing up. It’s just disgusting.” Wilkie said he’s even witnessed people injecting drugs in common areas of the building at 1416 20th Street West.