John Francis,
Bruce Peninsula Press
The Bradley Davis seniors apartments is a 14-unit building in Tobermory. It was built by Bruce County in the 1980s to offer an affordable place for seniors (55+) on the peninsula.
In the early evening of June 23, 2026, there was a fire in the bedroom of one unit. Bystanders, including an off-duty fire captain from Owen Sound, gathered as many fire extinguishers as they could find and managed to keep the fire from spreading during the crucial minutes before the fire department arrived. Fire damage was confined to that single unit, although two adjacent units suffered water damage. Unfortunately, smoke damage rendered the building temporarily uninhabitable and the residents all had to relocate.
The county quickly initiated repairs. They estimated damage at $100,000.
The building sat empty for a month, with yellow police tape ringing the property and NO TRESPASSING signs at the driveway. On July 24th, about half of the residents were permitted to move back in to their units. The rest of the residents have not yet received a firm move-in date although the county hopes some units will be fixed by early August.
The official cause of the fire is listed as “Accidental”. Neither the county nor the fire department will offer any detail beyond that but most of the building’s residents are convinced that the fire was caused by careless smoking.
Residents and caregivers have been complaining about tobacco smoke in the Bradley Davis apartments for at least 20 years. Everyone who was contacted for this story complained about the constant smell of smoke. “The smoke in the hallway would make your eyes water,” one resident said.
All of the residents said they had made complaints to the county on the subject but all were told that nothing could be done.
Some residents are nervous about moving back into their units. They believe the county will not do anything to address the smoking problem and worry that if there are no heroic bystanders around, the next fire could take the whole building.
Bruce Peninsula Press contacted Bruce County for clarification. They responded by email.
We asked if people are allowed to smoke in their units? The answer:
“Bruce County Housing Corporation (BCHC) owns and operates approximately 700 housing units. All were designated non-smoking in 2011 with the introduction of the Smoke-Free Ontario Act. However, tenants living in a BCHC building prior to this legislation may continue to smoke in their unit under the terms of their current lease. Units become non-smoking when a tenant voluntarily chooses to sign a new lease or moves out. All new leases issued after 2011 are non-smoking.”
We asked if the 2011 legislation allowed any of the residents of the Bradley Davis building to smoke in their units, to which the county replied:
“We cannot speak to specific lease terms for any of the residents due to tenant privacy and confidentiality.”
We asked if the county had received complaints about tobacco smoke in the building. They replied:
“Service requests and complaints are also confidential information.”
The county explains their complaints process:
“If a tenant breaches their lease, our Housing Services staff follow the processes and requirements of the Residential Tenancies Act. A breach will include smoking if their lease indicates non-smoking. We work with the tenant to seek voluntary compliance and to resolve issues. If we cannot come to a resolution, the County may apply to the Landlord and Tenant Board for support in finding a solution. This may include mediation, orders for compliance, or eviction depending on the severity and persistence of the issue.”
Each of the residents we spoke to had a list of lame excuses the county had given for not enforcing the smoking policy. Some of them were pretty comical.
But, as one resident pointed out, worrying about a fire every night when you’re trying to fall asleep is not funny at all.
