By Lisa Calce
"The building never sleeps and I don’t either," says Sean Costelloe, Superintendent at 4 and 10 Knightsbridge (Chelsea Gardens), one of Peel Living’s non-profit housing apartment buildings.
With 523 tenants, Sean was approached by three residents within the first few minutes of our interview and left his office to go and take care of something.
As I sat waiting for him, I noticed a letter of apology written by a young girl. Months earlier, she had taken to banging on neighbours’ doors. Sean asked her to sit down and write a letter of apology. "It’s become a little bit of a legend. Children in the building stand at the door, point to it and say – that’s the letter," he explained.
Sean was born in Ireland, but spent most of his life in Trinidad . He started as a Superintendent in 1992 and says it’s important to listen to people. "If you care about them, their apartment and the building is more than a place to live, it’s home," he says.
He helps his tenants any way he can - distributing food from charitable organizations to those who need it most, to keeping an extra close eye on children. When a mom panicked that her son was missing after receiving a call from school at work, Sean knew exactly what to ask. After learning who his friend in the building was, it wasn’t long before he figured out they played hooky and were in the friend’s apartment. When no one answered the door, he looked for the shadow in the peephole which gave the boys away.
His instinct and connection with his tenants means he knows more about what’s going on than anyone. "The people in my buildings are from all walks of life and are great people who care about the community," says Sean.
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