Tenants of the Ariela Condo Complex File Complaint: The Huot Group Rental Debacle

2023-10-21 04:00:00

Tenants of the Ariela, a rental condo complex that belonged to the Huot Group, feel cheated: they filed a complaint with the Administrative Housing Tribunal (TAL) since they claim not to have access to the services that had been promised to them during of signing the lease.

• Read also: Huot Group debacle: $2,500 per month for a view of a concrete crater

• Read also: “It’s a big failure”: Stéphan Huot breaks the silence on his financial debacle

Around ten occupants, including Richard Desmeules, filed a formal complaint with the TAL. They intend to demonstrate that the brochure presented to them during the rental misled them by promising services from the second phase.

“What we want is compensation for the months of rent where we “overpaid” from the signing of the rental contract, because we absolutely would not have signed knowing that we had been lied,” argues the man who lives in a large 4 1⁄2 with a breathtaking view of the foundations of phase 2 of the Ariela, for the sum of $3,000 per month.

Richard Desmeules pays $3,000 to have a bird’s eye view of the construction site of the second phase of the Ariela, which has been on hiatus for almost a year. Photo Le Journal de Québec Vincent Desbiens Vincent Desbiens

“Coming soon phase 2”

When they ratified the rental lease for their luxury condos, Mr. Desmeules, Bertrand Picard and regarding twenty other people knew they would have to be patient.

The multiple services which were announced in the leaflet on which The newspaper got its hands on, like indoor and outdoor swimming pools, a gymnasium, a yoga room and an indoor virtual golf lounge, were not expected to see the light of day for at least a year.

The presentation document available at the leasing office since spring 2022 indicates that these inclusions would be available upon delivery of phase 2 of the complex, without however giving a deadline.

As Richard Desmeules indicates in his index, the Ariela brochure mentions that common services will be available in phase 2 of the building, contrary to what the former building manager claimed. Photo Le Journal de Québec Vincent Desbiens Vincent Desbiens

Messrs. Desmeules and Picard had no hesitation regarding moving in a year ago, since they “saw that the construction site was progressing quickly and we [leur] had said that the services would be in phase 2”.

Then came the shutdown of the Millenum Construction site, in February 2023, followed by the financial debacle of the Huot Group, a few months later.

Contradiction

Information then began to circulate to the effect that the project designers had not planned to deliver any inclusions in the second phase.

In an email exchange between a dissatisfied tenant and the former manager of the rental complex obtained by The newspaperthe latter indeed confirms that “inclusions are not part of [sic] of phase 1 or 2.

“First of all, as with everyone, the rent price does not currently include inclusions. These will be in phase 3 for the most part,” we can read in another message from the person who was in charge of several complexes.

However, it was not possible to get the manager’s version of the facts, as he has no longer been employed by the Huot Group for several months. A source close to the matter confirmed that he did not wish to comment.

The “coming phase 2” services according to the brochure:

– Heated outdoor and indoor swimming pools

– Training room

– Urban BBQ

– Virtual indoor golf lounge

– Billiard room

– Card room and reading

– Pet grooming area

– Organic café and convenience store

– Milk bar

– Hair salon

What they said:

“We are waiting to see what increase they will offer us in January, but we have started to evaluate our options to leave. It’s not out of the question that we stay, but we’ll have to be really convinced”

– Richard Desmeules

“We looked at all the projects and they would have space in January, except that our lease ends in June. We hope to find better elsewhere at that time”

– Bertrand Picard

“All they delivered was indoor parking and there was only one electric charging station that we had to share. […] We pay for services that we may never receive. We live in a no man’s land”

– Michel Poirier, a resident of Ariela

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