Source : Sunday Times – 7 Jun 2009
Some 200 tenants of an illegally refurbished condominium in Grange Road now have more time – they have until the end of this month to vacate the building.
Also, they will stay rent-free till then.
The 140 apartments at The Grangeford in Leonie Hill, sold en bloc in 2007, had been illegally partitioned into 600 smaller units by the master tenant, Ideal Accommodation, so as to fetch more rent.
But the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) discovered what was happening in April and ordered the partitions to be torn down.
But Ideal did not inform the tenants, many of whom are foreigners, of the URA order until three days before the June 3 eviction date.
It is not known how many tenants have left. But the rest, about 200, have stayed put, with nowhere to go at such short notice.
Yesterday, the property’s owner, Cove Development, told The Sunday Times it has extended the deadline from next Sunday to June 30 so that the remaining tenants have more time to arrange alternative accommodation.
Last Wednesday, Cove Development terminated Ideal’s two-year lease after just five months, and gained a deadline extension from the URA. It now has till July 27 to tear down the partitions and restore the apartments.
Cove Development, a unit of Overseas Union Enterprise (OUE), is already helping some tenants get discounted lodgings at two hotels here, the Copthorne Orchid and Meritus Mandarin.
Tenants said they were offered hotel rates ranging from $75 to $100-plus per day for a room.
Said Mr Steven Ngai, company secretary for OUE: ‘We met some of the residents yesterday. They were very happy with the new deadline. They also don’t have to pay any rent for this month.’
When contacted by The Sunday Times yesterday, some tenants were still confused about what to do next.
Said one tenant, IT officer Nelson Ku, 25, an expatriate from Macau: ‘I know that sooner or later all of us will have to move out. But what happens to our contract with Ideal? Some of us have paid half a year’s rent. Will that be forfeited? It’s so confusing.’
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