Ontario city needs action on copper wire theft, says frustrated home builder

Allen Siyou Wu says he was naive about what can happen to home building sites in Windsor.

But now that his student housing project has been hit by vandals and copper wire thieves on four separate occasions so far this summer, he's wondering how crimes like these continue to happen.

"It is very surprising. We know the government, they [are] encouraging everybody to build a house, because we have a housing shortage in Canada, right? But they're not putting anything to support us," Wu told CBC Windsor.

"We can't fight bureaucracy, right? But at least they can put some more patrol in the middle of the night. Like, we can send our cops here. That's what I'm hoping for, as a bare minimum."

Wu and his business partners are in the midst of building new student residences on Bridge Avenue, a few blocks from the University of Windsor campus.

The project consists of a matching pair of three-level homes, each with eight bedrooms. Wu estimates the total investment in the property at around $1.6 million.

The thefts have been occurring overnight, when chunks of electrical cable have been cut and removed from framing. The repair work has cost the project thousands of dollars. Wu has reported the thefts to police, though Windsor police did not respond to a request for comment.

Wu said that in the latest incident, nothing was taken: The perpetrators caused senseless damage. A neighbour's surveillance camera recorded at least four individuals meeting up on the sidewalk before entering the home.

"We don't know if they're homeless, or just random teenagers who just want to screw things up," Wu lamented. "They just cause chaos."

After the second incident, Wu emailed the mayor's office, asking if the City of Windsor could provide any guidance or support on the issue.

"We understand your concerns and recognize that other property owners across the city have been experiencing similar issues," the mayor's office replied, in an email that was also sent to CBC Windsor.

"We encourage you to consider hiring one of the many private security providers throughout the city."

Wu told CBC Windsor that he and his partners were already frustrated by how much they've spent on building application and inspection fees — in the range of $20,000 to $30,000.

Now they're feeling like there have been more obstacles than there has been help for their housing-creation efforts.