Hamilton Mayor Andrea Horwath has filed a civil action against the City of Hamilton challenging the City’s enforcement of its property standards bylaw, following an order issued by the City requiring her to repair a dilapidated home she owns at 76 West Avenue North.
This latest filing follows a January 21, 2026, property standards order issued by the City requiring Horwath to repair the property, which is currently occupied by her former common-law partner law partner, Ben Leonetti. Horwath, acting in a personal capacity, is requesting “urgent relief” from the Superior Court, arguing that the cost of compliance—estimated at a minimum of $131,000—is “extremely prejudicial” to her financial interests.
In her application, Horwath asks the Court for permission to bypass the standard Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) process to immediately remove Leonetti and demolish the home. She notes that demolition would cost approximately $30,000.
“Repairing the Subject Property will be extremely prejudicial to my financial interests,” Horwath states in her application.
The City’s latest order cites 12 violations of the City’s property standards bylaw. It requires the building’s structural supports to be replaced, the roof to be repaired, retaining walls fixed, water damage repaired, and other issues addressed.
Hamilton’s bylaws do not permit the issuance of demolition permits for occupied properties. Under Mayor Horwath’s leadership, City Council significantly strengthened tenant protection bylaws during this Council term of office.
The Superior Court will hear the urgent motion on Tuesday, March 3, via videoconference
Horwath’s lawyer, James Brown, is expected to request the Court to find the City’s property standards bylaw is prejudicial to Horwath, request an order for the immediate removal of Leonetti from the property, and grant relief that will enable Horwath to successfully demolish the house.
This is the latest development in a personal situation that became a matter of public record in December when the City of Hamilton issued an unprecedented Emergency Order under the Building Code Act ordering the immediate removal of Leonetti from, and the immediate demolition of, the house.
The December 3, 2025, Order cited an engineering report commissioned by Horwath which stated the house was at a significant risk of collapse and needed to be immediately vacated and demolished. The City of Hamilton agreed to Horwath’s request to be permitted to demolish the house.
Leonetti declined to comply with the City Order, stating he would not leave his home. The City applied to the Superior Court for an order requiring Hamilton Police to remove Leonetti from the property to permit the demolition.
Instead of granting the City’s request, on December 10, 2025, Justice John Krawchenko invalidated the Emergency Order due to the City’s reliance on a private engineering report commissioned by Horwath instead of conducting its own independent inspection to obtain its own factual findings.
Horwath’s engineering report was commissioned as part of an ongoing civil suit alleging Leonetti has violated the terms of their 2010 separation agreement.
When the City subsequently hired its own independent engineer, the findings differed. The independent report determined the building could be stabilized and did not require demolition. Consequently, a new Emergency Order was issued on December 12, requiring stabilization of the structure, removal of rear additions and decks, and other safety repairs, rather than the destruction of the home.
Leonetti remained uncooperative and interfered with City-hired contractors who were engaged in stabilizing the house. The City went to Court to obtain an injunction requiring Leonetti cease his interference.
Court Documents and Related Materials
- February 20, 2026:
Andrea Horwath’s Notice of Application to the Superior Court against Ben Leonetti and the City of Hamilton. - February 13, 2026:
Affidavit of Andrea Horwath - January 21, 2026: City of Hamilton Property Standards Order for 76 West Avenue North
- December 22, 2025: Application Record, Robert Lalli, in his capacity as Chief Building Official of the City of Hamilton.
- December 22, 2025: Affidavit of Service, City of Hamilton.
- December 22, 2025:
Notice of Application, Robert Lalli, in his capacity as Chief Building Official of the City of Hamilton. - December 22, 2025:
Factum, Robert Lalli, in his capacity as Chief Building Official of the City of Hamilton. - December 12, 2025: Element Forensic Engineering Report regarding structural integrity of 76 West Avenue North. (Independent Engineer’s report)
- December 5, 2025:
Notice of Application, Robert Lalli, in his capacity as Chief Building Official of the City of Hamilton. - December 5, 2025: Application Record, Robert Lalli, in his capacity as Chief Building Official of the City of Hamilton.
- December 5, 2025: Factum, Robert Lalli, in his capacity as Chief Building Official of the City of Hamilton.
- November 28, 2025: Kalos Engineering Inc Report regarding structural integrity of 76 West Avenue North. (Horwath Report)
- November 26, 2025: Horwath’s civil litigation Statement of Claim against Leonetti.
During the December 23, 2025, Superior Court hearing, Horwath’s lawyer opposed the City’s stabilization efforts. Her lawyer argued that repairing the home created “severe prejudice” for Horwath because “it’s a lot more expensive to repair” than to demolish.
Justice Michael J. Valente refused Horwath’s request, telling Horwath’s lawyer: “I’m not prepared to evict Mr. Leonetti without a full hearing and full record before the Court… I’m not doing it today, especially on December 23rd. It’s not going to happen.”
Justice Valente noted that Horwath’s request would need to be brought as a separate matter, predicting it would result in a “lengthy” hearing.
If Horwath is unsuccessful in Court, the January 21 Property Standards Order requires her to bring the property into compliance by May 1. Like any other Hamilton landlord, she can request an extension from the Property Standards Committee, which routinely grants them to owners who provide evidence they have retained contractors and are working to comply with orders.
Mayor Horwath has declined to answer questions regarding these matters.
Tuesday’s Superior Court hearing is scheduled to begin at 10:00 a.m.
Note: Ontario Superior Court proceedings are open to the public in accordance with the open courts principle. Members of the public seeking to observe virtual hearings must email the courthouse to request the hearing link. More information on how to file a request is available on the Superior Court website here. The email address for Hamilton requests is hamilton.superior.court@ontario.ca. This case is indexed as CV-26-00093939-0000 Horwath v. Leonetti et al.
Production Details
v. 1.0.0
Published: February 28, 2026
Last updated: February 28, 2026
Author: Joey Coleman
Update Record
v. 1.0.0 original version
The critical piece of information that is missing is their separation agreement. It appears Horwath agreed to provide an affordable rental unit to her ex partner as part of the spousal support. She might want to rethink exactly what is prejudicial to her financial interests as Valente may just rule that she has to provide another rental unit at the same rate that her ex has been paying. These are new rules to protect tenants… wait a minute… is he a tenant? Hmmm…
Is their a process available to force a Mayor out before an election?