Family Held "Hostage" in Ontario over Building Dispute

by Jane Smith, Independent Editorialist

The motto for the Township of Rideau Lakes is "An experience to remember". For Rick, Lori and Mara Bryden, living in Rideau Lakes is an experience they'll never forget. In 2002, the small family could never have imagined that when they hired a local general contractor to build their dream home that it would turn into a nightmare. Like an alarming number of homeowners in Ontario, they have found that the presumed safeguards that are in place to protect the homeowner are simply not there. The Bryden case is just another example of the failure of the enforcement and accountability of Ontario's Building Code.

In this case, the Chief Building Official for the Township of Rideau Lakes, in the county of Leeds and Grenville, declared in 2002 that the house that was being built for the Bryden's by a local general contractor, met all Building Code requirements. Perhaps noteworthy is that the CBO's immediate supervisor, the Chairman of the Building Committee, is the contractor's brother. In an effort to resolve a dispute with the contractor, four provincial engineers were hired to assess the condition of the house. All four provincial engineers agreed that there are significant deficiencies and potentially require demolition of the entire structure.

The former Chief Building Official is no longer working for this municipality following his conduct regarding this house. The new Chief Building Official and Deputy Building Official have examined the structure and agree with the four engineers that the structure is unsafe and that all deficiencies, previously approved, must now be corrected prior to the continuation of construction. In fact, the building has been posted with four notices including a stop work order and an unsafe to enter building order.

The Bryden's have been literally stuck for over five years. They have continued to pay property taxes and a mortgage in hopes that someone would be accountable for the faulty construction and improper inspections. They are living in Lori's family home, right beside their condemned dream home. Originally they were told by the municipality that the municipality was going to take a "proactive approach" to fixing the problems and that there would be a "settlement meeting". A few months later, they were told that this would not happen. They then received a letter from the municipalities' solicitor banning them from speaking to council or to anyone at the municipal office.

Over the course of the past five years, the Bryden's have made it their mission to obtain answers so that they can move forward with their lives. They have searched for a governing body who oversees the role of the building official and have found that there isn't one. They have appealed to the mayor and council, who are the representatives of the residents and ironically enforcers of the building code. They have appealed to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing and have been told that the municipality is a "mature and responsible government" that acts independently from the provincial government. They were told that their only recourse is to sue the municipality. They have appealed to the Ombudsman but were told that the ombudsman does not get involved with municipal matters.

Ironically, the Bryden's are warranted by Tarion. However, due to a "loophole", the coverage only begins upon occupancy. The Municipality will not allow construction to continue until faulty work has been corrected and Tarion will not fix mistakes until occupancy occurs! The municipality once again will not engage in conversation about their liability and their only suggestion is that the Bryden's should just walk away and leave the house.

Ontario's judicial system is not equipped to deal with matters such as these. The dispute with the contractor did not end satisfactorily. The judge gave no weight to any of the four engineering reports but instead ruled in favour of the contractor as "he has been building for thirty five years". Now the Bryden's are forced to pay the contractor for his shoddy work ($120,000 total) and then they must satisfy the municipalities' demands before moving forward with this home. Estimates to fix the contractor's work to bring it to the current stage of construction (not yet closed in) are approximately $300,000.

Last week [as of 9 November 2007], the Bryden's received a sherriff's order to vacate their family home (the only home they have to live in) as the contractor is selling their home to pay for his work on the other home. The total equity in the house is about $10,000. For this $10,000, the house will be auctioned off and the Bryden's will be homeless. The Bryden's have pleaded with him to instead take the house that he built as they can't do anything with it.

Lori Bryden, who was the Liberal MPP candidate for Leeds-Grenville is not taking this "sitting down". She is making it her goal to see that no one else in the Township of Rideau Lakes experiences building problems. She has placed ads in local newspapers asking homeowners with building problems to call her. She will continue to fight for changes in the system at all levels. No one in Ontario should have to experience this nightmare!

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