After years of tenant tension, this Rosedale couple isn't getting the boot

The couple at the heart of tenant tension at 1 Rosedale Road say they feel "vindicated" after the Landlord and Tenant Board dismissed the eviction order against them.

Dot and Paul Pang were set to be booted out of the apartment building in one of the city's poshest neighbourhoods following years of rising conflict. The Pangs say their fellow tenants were targeting them for being Chinese, by "trespassing" and "stalking" them. Meanwhile, other tenants in the 24-unit building claim they were the ones being harassed by the Pangs.

• How 1 Rosedale apartment building became a hotbed for tenant tension and racism accusations
• 'Misbehaving' tenants or racism? Tension at Rosedale building heats up at eviction hearing

Following a he-said-she-said eviction hearing on June 6, the order issued this week by adjudicator Roger Rodrigues dismissed the landlord's application — meaning the Pangs get to stay.

Rodrigues outlined the evidence from the Pangs and three other tenants during the hearing, noting one tenant claimed Dot Pang uttered profanities, but later admitted when pressed by the Pang's lawyer that he may have "misused" the term "profanities."

Dot Pangs' testimony, in contrast, was delivered "without any inconsistencies," he wrote in the order issued this week.

"The crux of the complaints was that my clients speak Chinese to each other in common areas, and that they allegedly give other tenants dirty looks," said the Pangs' lawyer, Caryma Sa'd. "And yet the landlord went ahead trying to evict on such petty and frivolous grounds."

Property manager Aubrey Hannah, speaking on behalf of both himself and landlord Les Steiner, told CBC Toronto in an email that the eviction application was made at the request of the building's tenants.

"We sincerely hope we won't have to do it again," Hannah wrote.

Pangs say they endured bullying, racism

Other tenants who spoke to CBC Toronto say the Pangs harassed numerous people who live in the building, and also expressed frustration that only three tenant complaints were allowed at the eviction hearing. At the time, the tenants' paralegal, David Rubin, said that looking at just three complaints in a "vacuum" was problematic.

As CBC Toronto previously reported, a 52-page report from an outside mediator fleshed out many of the issues in the building, including the Pangs "accusatory" tone with other tenants and their refusal to meet with Hannah. 

It also found the Pangs "have not been victims of racial discrimination and harassment," but that the negative interactions between them and other tenants were based on misunderstandings.

The report also noted police involvement, which other tenants say was meant to ease the tension.

"In many cases, the officers at 53 Division have attempted to resolve these issues through mediation and other means," confirmed Toronto police spokesperson Meaghan Gray. "No criminal charges have been laid in relation to these occurrences."

In a statement, the Pangs stressed that they have continually told the truth — that they've endured bullying, racism, and "false allegations" from their neighbours as the only Asian couple in the building.

"We are now exploring my clients' legal options to address the discrimination and harassment they have endured for years," S'ad said.

She said this could include a human rights tribunal application or civil action against the landlord and other tenants.