Update On Pat's Home in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

 

Pat's home in downtown Hamilton, Ontario, Canada March 27, 2024 (the one on the left with a yellow door)

Remember a few years back when I wrote about Pat's problem neighbor?

Pat lives in downtown Hamilton, Ontario, Canada on Hess Street. 

He moved there three years ago after selling his penthouse condo at the former Royal Connaught Hotel (at a big loss) when the housing market in Canada was collapsing. 

He was lucky to find this gem of a small house that was built in 1910. He fell in love with it right away, being the minimalist that he is. 

The location (downtown, right next to Hess Village) was perfect. 

The size (under six hundred square feet) was also perfect. Pat is the opposite of me. I like a big house (mine is over 5200 square feet). 

However, there was one big problem that Pat didn't discover until after he moved in. 

Pat's house is on the left (yellow door). 

The problem is the middle house. It's inhabited by squatters. Druggie squatters. 

Well, not actually squatters. The woman who occupies it is the granddaughter of a man who died intestate. He owned several properties in Hamilton, all in disrepair. She doesn't own the house. She (Kim). , with her druggie boyfriend (Ray, also the father of her children, Pat thinks they are married),  moved in three years ago. 

After they moved in Pat and his neighbors began to see a steady flow of "customers." 

Yes, this is a real picture of some of Pat's neighbor's visitors. I wonder what the draw is?

Drug customers.

Sex (yes) customers.

"Houston, we have a problem here."

I could write a small book about all the going ons the past three years but I don't have the time here to do that. But what I can say that this has been a nightmare for Pat and his neighbors, especially the woman (Samantha) who lives in the other small house connected on the right. The druggie squatters live (if it can be called living) in the middle house.

Ray, Pat and Sam's neighbor and what the inside of their "home" looks like. Sam snuck this picture.

When they first moved in they didn't have running water or electricity. They were probably stealing Pat or Sam's facilities. Pat and Sam ended that. 

More "merchandise" from Pat's neighbors - right on the front lawn

Then the druggies were keeping Pat and Sam up all night (at that time Sam was the full-time caregiver of her dying husband, who has since died) with hammering on the walls (they must of been doing redecorating), loud arguments (always from the woman who was screaming at her partner and father of her four children who aren't there thank God), and the worst of all the constant stream of unsavory characters coming and going at all hours. The only quiet times were in the morning. Pat and Sam suspect they're vampires.

Now for the past three years Pat and Sam have complained and complained to the city authorities. Made calls to the police. Contacted and paid lawyers to see what they can do about having their druggie neighbors evicted because they haven't paid taxes (of course) for the past three years. 

About two months ago Ray disappeared. Pat and Sam think he's in jail. Arrested for either selling drugs (which they obviously were doing out of this house) and/or selling stolen goods (lots of furniture and clothing and other items pass through their doors). 

This picture taken last month of Kim sitting on her front stoop with a friend. Pat tells friends who visit him that he lives on Skid Row. I actually feel sorry for her. What a waste of a life. 

Since Ray disappeared from the scene it's been relatively quiet. Except for two occasions when someone else was over there and left the radio on all night blasting. Both Pat and Sam called the authorities but they couldn't do anything (break in). Eventually that stopped but someone else is there. Pat and Sam don't know who but this whole thing seems to be coming to a head. Yesterday Sam took picture of Kim trying to remove a padlock from the front door. 

You know what folks? I'm getting depressed with writing this post about Pat's neighbors. What a terrible waste of life. This woman is the mother to four children. I understand she's just trying to live her life the best she can with her addiction. It's just a shame that her life is impacting on so many others. Not just Pat and his neighbor Samantha but the other neighbors on the street. 

Now that someone (we think the city) has padlocked the residence, maybe something will finally have to be done. This situation is a complicated because the property did belong to her father (or grandfather). But she hasn't paid taxes for at least three years and she is a disturbance to the neighborhood. 

When I see something like this I realize how fortunate I am to live where I live. Back in the eighties, when I had an apartment in center city Philadelphia that I leased for a year while our house out in the country was being completed (believe it or not we sold our house in Philly too fast, before our other house was completed and I needed a place to live and go to work), I tried to help two different drug addicted guys. It just didn't work out. One almost burned down my apartment when he fell asleep with a lit cigarette. When I mentioned this to a friend he told me the reason this guy was homeless was because where he was staying he did catch the place on fire by falling asleep with a lit cigarette and they threw him out. I had to do the same thing. I won't even get into what I had to deal with the other guy I was trying to help. Both of them were gay so that was the link. All I remember it was a nightmare trying to help these guys who had the addiction. I failed. 

I'll leave with this image of Kim having an episode out in the street in front of Pat's house. So sad. 

Now you know why I haven't been posting about Pat's problem neighbor. 

I'm going out now to get some fresh air.