Stratford cracking down on vacant property after squatters take over house

The Town of Stratford is reminding people who own vacant buildings to secure them — and warning folks not to trespass on property which isn't theirs.

According to the document package for Wednesday night's council meeting, RCMP got a call in March about a person approaching a vacant property on Horton Drive.

Officers found four people inside "who appeared to have moved in," said Coun. Jody Jackson, chair of safety services for the town. He said the RCMP told them to leave and not return.

"We've had some concerns over the last couple years since [post-tropical storm] Fiona around the state of the property — you know, trees on the roof and just generally unoccupied. So we always feared that there may be some chance for folks to move in there," he said.

The property, at 9 Horton Drive, sits on the waterfront on the Stratford side of the Hillsborough Bridge.

As well as people living inside the building, police found stolen items during the March call that were returned to the rightful owners, according to Wednesday night's council package.

Jackson called it "not an ideal situation for us, or for them from a safety standpoint."  

After the town asked the owners to clean up and secure the house, Jackson said there has been some progress.

"Some of the trees that were on the roof and in the driveway have been cleaned up. I know it was a concern for our fire company that they couldn't get into the structure should there be a fire." 

Officials with the province said the property is owned by a numbered company, and that company dissolved in October 2023. The town has contacted the owners and believes they will secure the property by a deadline of May 18.

CBC News did try to contact a person attached to the company, but did not hear back.

Town staff and RCMP are still monitoring the area around the empty home, as well as the nearby park where Jackson said people have set up tents to camp outside in the past. 

"We have to understand the situation these folks are in and we all could be in those positions," Jackson said. "We have to be empathic and we have to try to help where we can."

Cpl. Gavin Moore, the RCMP's spokesman on the Island, said there are many vacant buildings across the Island that can attract unwanted attention. He cited two abandoned houses that were recently set on fire in Prince County.