Image: Mike Vanden Bosch / Pattison Media

By Mike Vanden Bosch

Derelict Chilliwack home

Chilliwack resident frustrated by derelict home, safety issues linked to uninhabitable Tyson Road house

May 1, 2025 | 2:04 PM

CHILLIWACK — A Chilliwack resident says a derelict home in the 5600 block of Tyson Road near the Sardis Sports Complex that generated over 30 bylaw complaints to the City of Chilliwack has not been fully remediated.

City staff began receiving complaints in early 2024 about the home and began a legislative and legal process that culminated in Chilliwack City Council issuing an order of remedial action on November 19, 2024, in accordance with the Community Charter. As per the council resolution, city staff sought estimates from contractors to begin cleanup efforts.

A fire at the home in late December 2024 left it officially uninhabitable.

As recent as January 2025, sheets of plywood had been mounted to two sections of the front of the west-facing house, while a window that had been gaping wide open was partially covered up. Piles of unsightly garbage were visible on both sides of the home.

Earlier this week, RCMP and bylaw attended the home where multiple garbage bags were situated in the front yard, which is largely dirt now.

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According to a Tyson Road-area resident who spoke on the condition of anonymity in order to speak safely and freely, the Tyson Road home remains an eyesore.

“The yard has been tidied up, but the windows that were blown out due to a deliberate fire set in late December 2024 are still not remedied,” the Tyson Road resident said. “Garbage is still accruing. More homeless people living there (in a condemned home). Not a lot, if anything being done by city bylaw & police.”

The neighbour said she and her fellow Tyson Road neighbours work hard to keep their properties looking good, but the owner of the dilapidated home hasn’t.

“Yet many of us keep our property cleaned, maintained, and pay our property tax,” she said. “What precedence is this setting for everyone?”

The resident also says she doesn’t feel safe due to what’s happening at the derelict home.

“We do not feel safe in our front yard nor our neighbourhood,” she said. “It’s really sad because we used to love living here. Now, we just keep our blinds closed and stay indoors.”

The resident believes the deficient conditions at 5660 Tyson Road have contributed to a rat infestation on her own property.

“Don’t even get me started on how many rats we have had to kill on our property because of this (home), nor the hundreds of dollars we have spent to get rodent specialists trying to help,” she said, adding that she’s spent thousands to upgrade security on her property. “Plus, we would love to sell our home but no one wants to live next to this.”