Property Standards Issues at No. 21 Saunders Road
Daniel Haubold
Ward 13 - Scarborough Bluffs
The Scarborough Community Council recommends the adoption of the following report
(March 1, 1999) from the Director of Municipal Licencing and Standards, subject to
adding the following:
(1)that the Director of Municipal Licencing and Standards be authorized to spend up
to $10,000.00 to deal with this situation and report back to Scarborough Community
Council in the event additional monies are required;
(2)that all costs of the clean-up of this property be levied against the homeowner as
taxes;
(3)that the Executive Director of Municipal Licencing and Standards be requested to
report to the Urban Environment and Development Committee and Council:
(a)on the adequacy of the Property Standards By-law to respond to property
standards abuses;
(b)on the adequacy of the powers provided to the courts to respond to local property
standards abuses; and
(c)to recommend changes to provincial legislation to address the powers of
municipalities to respond to property standards abuses.
The Scarborough Community Council submits the following report (March 1, 1999)
from the Municipal Licencing and Standards Manager, East District:
Purpose:
The purpose of this report is to document the history of the Division's involvement with the
property known municipally as 21 Saunders Road and to recommend strategies for the
resolution of complaints concerning the condition of the property.
Financial Implications and Impact Statement:
There will be costs associated with any subsequent clean-up of the property although such
costs will ultimately be collected as taxes or in like manner as taxes.
Recommendations:
It is recommended that the Municipal Licencing and Standards Manager, East District, be
directed to proceed with enforcement of Zoning By-law 10010, as amended, and By-law
24222, as amended, at premises municipally known as 21 Saunders Road.
Background/History:
The property known municipally as 21 Saunders Road is composed of a single family
dwelling on a lot with a fifty foot frontage and a depth of two hundred and ninety-two feet.
The property has been the subject of investigation since June, 1984. Since the first complaint,
there have been numerous inspections of the property resulting in multiple notices and orders
to comply issued. In addition, of the five trials initiated, four have resulted in conviction and
one was adjourned sine die. All of this activity has centred around the condition of the
property, most notably, the accumulation of domestic waste in the rear yard.
Over the years, the record indicates that the Division has afforded every opportunity to the
owner to bring the property into compliance. Attempts at enforcement have been met with
resistance by the owner through the use of all avenues of appeal and rights afforded an
accused. It should be noted that all means of opposing the city's legal and property standards
actions by the owner are completely legal, however, such tactics have served to draw the issue
out much further than is normally the case.
Since 1990, complaints have been received from the neighbours regarding the large quantity
of materials accumulating in the rear yard. These materials have consisted of accumulations of
lumber and other wood products, metal material and masonry products and in an attempt to
lessen the impact, the neighbours immediately south of the subject property constructed a
solid board fence along the mutual lot line. The most recent court action took place in August,
1997, when the owner was convicted and placed on probation for a period of six months. In
rendering sentence, Justice of the Peace Brown ordered that waste materials be removed from
the rear and that all usable or reusable materials be stored neatly and covered, if appropriate.
In response to the court's directive, the owner has covered much of the material with tarps and
has constructed screen fencing panels to block the view from the abutting properties. In
addition to the Division's involvement, it is understood that the owner and his neighbours
immediately south of the property entered into an alternate dispute resolution process but were
unsuccessful in resolving the matter.
At the present, the owner has relocated to another property in the city and the house at 21
Saunders Road is currently vacant. In the fall of 1998, accumulations of car parts, wood and
metal were noted in the front yard. A notice was issued and the debris was subsequently
cleaned up by work order. Around the same time, an inspection was undertaken by the Fire
Department who concluded that no fire safety issues existed in the rear yard.
Enforcement action is currently pending over the issue of a vehicle, trailer and a pile of metal
material stored in the front yard.
Legislation:
There are three by-laws currently available which address the ongoing issues at the property.
They are the Property Standards By-law 20483 as amended; the Domestic and Industrial
Waste By-law 24222, as amended, and the Scarborough Village Community Zoning By-law
10010, as amended.
By-law 20483
The Property Standards By-law defines 'refuse' to include "...garbage, rubbish, debris, ashes
and discarded or reclaimable waste." Section 5.1.1 states that:
"Exterior property areas shall be maintained in a neat and tidy condition so as not to detract
from the neighbouring environment or present a hazard to any person."
Section 5.1.2 (g) goes on to state in part that:-
"...a neat and tidy condition includes the removal of accumulations of material, debris or other
objects that create an unsafe or unsightly condition deleterious to the neighbouring
environment."
While the above section has been used in the past to deal with accumulations at the property,
the appeal process connected with the procedure has been quite time consuming. Depending
upon the timing, an appeal to the Property Standards Appeal Committee of an Order to
Comply issued under the by-law can take four to six weeks. A further appeal to the courts is
available to the owner and this additional step can take up to six to eight months. Only after
all appeals are exhausted would the city be in a position to take action to enforce the Order to
Comply or commence legal action.
As noted previously, the owner has covered much of the material with tarps and has also
attempted to screen the material by erecting screen fencing around the accumulations. Based
upon these efforts, there may be an argument that an unsightly condition does not exist
although the tarped piles could in themselves be considered unsightly.
Once all avenues of appeal are exhausted, the repairs demanded in the Order to Comply may
be undertaken by the municipality with all associated costs collected as taxes. In addition,
legal action may also be initiated.
By-law 24222
By-law 24222, as amended, was enacted to deal specifically with the removal, storage and
disposal of domestic and industrial waste. Under the by-law, domestic waste is defined in part
as:
"...means any article, thing or matter belonging to or associated with a house or household or
concerning or relating to the home or family that appears to be waste material, including but
not limited to:
(1)Accumulations, deposits, leavings, litter, remains, rubbish, trash, garbage, refuse and
debris;..."
The by-law requires the issuance of a notice to the owner to remove any material which
offends the by-law provisions. Normally, where the property is owner occupied, a compliance
time frame of forty eight hours is given. Where the ownership involves an absentee owner,
time granted is usually extended to five days. The process does not involve any appeal
procedure. If the city undertakes the clean up, the costs are billed to the owner and collected in
like manner as taxes.
By-law 10010
By-law 10010, as amended, sets out the zoning provisions for the subject property which is
zoned "S" for single family residential uses. Under Clause VIII, Section 1 (a), three uses are
noted as permitted in the zone. They are single family dwellings; group homes and
correctional group homes. The storage and accumulation of material on the site is not listed as
a permitted use.
Where a contravention with the by-law is noted, a notice is issued to the owner directing
compliance. The time frame for such compliance can vary but usually ranges from two to four
weeks. There is no appeal process established in connection with the enforcement of this
by-law. Non compliance with a notice results in legal action.
Report:
There are currently two options open to the municipality to deal with this issue. The property
can be cleaned up or legal action can be initiated. In the normal course of events, the division
would issue a notice to clear the propertyof the accumulations, failing which, a city crew
would undertake the work.
The subject property presents some features which make such an undertaking more difficult.
The property is fenced and there is no apparent entry to the rear yard except through the
garage or house. The subject and neighbouring houses are close enough to each other so as to
preclude the use of machinery in any clean-up. The work would have to be undertaken by
hand which would add considerably to the cost although admittedly, this cost would
ultimately be borne by the owner. In order to accomplish the clean up, entry should ideally be
through the neighbouring yard at 19Saunders Road and a portion of the board fence which
currently separates the properties would have to be removed temporarily to accommodate
access.
If legal action is taken, the Division would proceed under Zoning By-law 10010. The charge
would be for using the property for a use (storage purposes) which is not permitted. Assuming
a successful prosecution, a request for a Prohibition Order would be made as part of the
sentencing recommendation. If such an Order were granted, continuation of the use would
constitute contempt of court.
As noted previously, two by-laws exist which can be utilized for clean ups. The Property
Standards By-law, while providing for full cost recovery, involves an appeal process which is
not deemed suitable for prompt resolution of the problem. The Domestic and Industrial Waste
By-law does not involve any appeal process and is considered a more appropriate method to
effect the removal of the material, although costs are collected in like manner as taxes only.
As noted previously, the property owners at 19 Saunders Road would be required to grant
access to their rear yard and permission to temporarily remove a portion of their boundary
fence.
Justification:
By-law 24222, as amended, prohibits the accumulation of domestic and industrial waste on
properties within the municipality. By-law 10010, as amended, regulates the use of land
within the municipality.
Contact Name:
Bryan Byng, District Manager - East District
(416) 396-7071 (416) 396-4266 Fax Number
byng#u#b@city.scarborough.on.ca
Ms. Delia Roy-Ivaria appeared before the Community Council in connection with the
foregoing matter, and provided a videotape, which was viewed by Community Council
members, illustrating the property standards issues at this address.
Community Council also received two communications respecting this issue:
(1)from Adrian Shaikh, Solicitor, on behalf of Daniel Haubold, requesting deferral of this
issue due to his inability to attend the Community Council meeting; and
(2)from Daniel Haubold, requesting deferral due to his inability to attend the meeting;
copies of which were provided to all Members of the Community Council, and a copy thereof
is on file in the Office of the City Clerk, Scarborough Civic Centre.