The Supreme Court of B.C. is ordering the owners of an Osoyoos property to either finish the home or demolish it.
It has been six years since the original building permit was issued and the house is still in the framing stage.
“It’s been awful to drive by there every day and look at that. It’s an eyesore,” neighbour Theresa Toepfer told Global News.
“Enough is enough. Something has to get done with it.”
The Town of Osoyoos has renewed building permits for the Oleander Avenue property three times.
“We always want people to build their home and have that place that they want to live,” Osoyoos Mayor Sue McKortoff told Global News.
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“This one has taken far too long and there have been many interventions all the way along from the town, from our bylaw officers, from our building inspectors and as the court realized they have broken many of the bylaws.”
Global News reached out to owners Murray and Kathy Bloom who said they were unwilling to comment at this time.
They wrote a notice to the town of Osoyoos saying: “Your presumption that your bylaws have any force or effect over the equitable owners of private property is incorrect… and must be accompanied by contractural evidence.”
The Blooms have also threatened to charge the town $75,000 every time bylaw officers came onto their property and $25,000 for every hour they had to appear in court.
However, the 14-page judgment found the homeowners in contravention to a number of Osoyoos’ bylaws.
The judge gave the couple a choice — comply or have the house demolished at their expense.
© 2024 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
