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.
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.