Video – Cobourg Woman Says She Feels Like a Prisoner After Accessible Entrance Damaged

Pete Fisher
2 hours ago
• Categories: Local

A Cobourg woman confined to a wheelchair says she has been effectively trapped inside her apartment for nearly three months after the accessible entrance to her building was damaged by a vehicle.

Pam Wilkin lives on the second floor of the apartment building at 86 Munroe Street with Jon Adams. Since a vehicle struck the building’s front doors on May 29, 2026, the accessible doors have remained inoperable.

For Wilkin, the damage has meant she can no longer safely enter or leave the building without assistance.

“The front door made it possible for her to come in and out of the rental complex. Without the use of the front door, her ability to enter and exit the rental complex is impaired,” Adams wrote in a letter to the building’s management.

Wilkin is now forced to use the building’s side entrance, something Adams says presents a serious safety concern.

“Ms. Wilkin is unable to use those doors on her own, and because the door is situated at the top of a flight of stairs, she has to turn her wheelchair in a way that is very precarious and puts her at serious risk of having her wheelchair fall down the flight of stairs,” the letter states.

For several days following the damage, Wilkin said the front doors were simply propped open.

“So it wasn’t too bad — I could get out and come back in,” she said.

But the building is a secure residential complex, and eventually the doors had to be closed.

That is when Wilkin says her problems became much worse.

“I can’t do it,” she said.

Since then, Adams has had to remain at home to help Wilkin get in and out of the building.

A simple trip to a grocery store located just one block away has become virtually impossible.

“Or if I could get outside, I can’t get back in,” Wilkin said.

On one occasion, she said she sat in the building’s lobby for approximately 15 minutes hoping another resident would come along who could help her get through the entrance.

Eventually, she gave up.

“So I go back up into my little prison. I can’t do anything.”

Wilkin said the situation is also taking a toll on her mental well-being.

“Mental health is not good right now. I’ve got other health issues and stress is the worst thing for me.”

Adams’ letter to management points to both the Residential Tenancies Act and the Ontario Human Rights Code.

“The tenancy is governed by the Residential Tenancies Act, which includes a requirement that the building be reasonable maintained and repaired,” the letter states. “The tenancy is also governed by the Ontario Human Rights Code, which protects, among other things, the rights of Ontarians with disabilities to receive rental housing services in a way that does not discriminate against them on the basis of their disability.”

As of August 19, there had been no response to the letter from the building’s management.

Today’s Northumberland also contacted the company by email seeking information about the damaged entrance and when repairs are expected to be completed. No response was received.

The Town of Cobourg is aware of the situation.

Jenny Neutel, the Town’s Manager of Communications, said the issue is not considered a Fire Department code matter.

“From our side of things, a property standards order was issued to the property owner. The responsibility of replacing and/or repairing the door is on the property owner,” Neutel said.

The Town did not provide further information about the deadline attached to the order or whether penalties could be imposed if the repairs are not completed.

For Wilkin, however, the issue is about more than a damaged door.

It has meant losing a basic freedom many residents take for granted — the ability to leave their own home and return safely.

“I can’t do anything,” she said.