logo
ENFRع
#

Latest news with #CityofSurrey

Surrey might issue violation notice for construction of secondary suites without permits
Surrey might issue violation notice for construction of secondary suites without permits

The Province

time07-07-2025

  • Business
  • The Province

Surrey might issue violation notice for construction of secondary suites without permits

The property on Townline Diversion has been subject to seven fines and repeated visits by building inspectors over the work Exterior photos of a property on Townline Diversion road in Surrey where building inspectors documented extensive construction of two secondary suites, a rooftop deck and awnings without permits. After issuing a stop-work order and fines, the city is considering filing a notice with the Land Title Office that would advise potential buyers of the unpermitted construction. Photo by City of Surrey A Surrey home might have a notice slapped on it by the city after its owners were ticketed seven times for unpermitted construction of two secondary units and a rooftop deck. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Exclusive articles by top sports columnists Patrick Johnston, Ben Kuzma, J.J. Abrams and others. Plus, Canucks Report, Sports and Headline News newsletters and events. Unlimited online access to The Province and 15 news sites with one account. The Province ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles and comics, including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Exclusive articles by top sports columnists Patrick Johnston, Ben Kuzma, J.J. Abrams and others. Plus, Canucks Report, Sports and Headline News newsletters and events. Unlimited online access to The Province and 15 news sites with one account. The Province ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles and comics, including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors The house in the 9700-block of Townline Diversion in northwest Surrey was visited by bylaw enforcement officers and building inspectors on several occasions starting late last year after construction began in the rear of the property without any building applications or permits. At a special hearing on Monday, inspectors for the City of Surrey will recommend that councillors approve a notice with the Land Title Office to let the public — including any potential buyers — know the work was done in violation of provincial building rules. The owners will have a chance to speak at the hearing. The notice, called a Section 57, 'alerts anyone searching a title to a property, such as prospective purchasers, that a property may contravene bylaws or regulations relating to building safety.' Stay on top of the latest real estate news and home design trends. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. A stop work order on the front door of a Surrey property where two secondary suites and a rooftop deck were built without the necessary permits. Photo by City of Surrey While it doesn't give details of the contraventions, the notice would indicate that more information can be found at city hall. It can only be repealed if the building inspector confirms the problems have been fixed, or if the owners are granted a cancellation of the notice by city council. If neither of those things happen, they would have to apply to the Supreme Court of B.C. to have it cancelled. The current owners bought the home, originally constructed in the late 1950s, in 2016. A bylaw officer visited the property in November 2024 and saw construction on the property that included two dwelling units, a rooftop deck and two awnings. The city had not issued any building permits for the work. In the months that followed that first visit, inspectors went to the property several times and issued orders to stop work, and telling the owners to apply to demolish the new construction and get the necessary permits. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. During inspections, workers were spotted on several occasions, and city staffers took copious photos as evidence that the work was continuing. At one point, the owners sent a letter to the city saying a survey had been done and an application for a secondary suite had been sent. An engineer also contacted the city to say he'd been retained and was developing a plan and application. Exterior photos of a property on Townline Diversion road in Surrey where building inspectors documented extensive construction of two secondary suites, a rooftop deck and awnings without permits. Photo by City of Surrey Six months after the original stop-work order, the homeowners applied for a construction permit. But the city's manager of permits rejected the application over safety and building code concerns, and because adding more than one secondary suite was non-compliant with zoning for the property. In all, the city issued seven bylaw contravention notices; the owners paid $2,000 in fines but disputed three of the tickets, which have not been adjudicated. They also paid $1,140 for five visits to the site by inspectors and bylaw officers. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The notice with the title office is being considered as a last resort because the owners continued the work, and there is evidence that the units are occupied in spite of the violations and sanctions. 'At this time, staff do not see a realistic path for the owners to obtain a building permit to retain the unpermitted works,' read the report. It said 'the construction has progressed to a point where many essential elements are now obscured, preventing the necessary inspections by the city to confirm safety and compliance with the building bylaw and B.C. Building Code. jruttle@ Read More Local News News News News News

Metro Vancouver councillors call for better oversight after alleged misspending and fraud
Metro Vancouver councillors call for better oversight after alleged misspending and fraud

CBC

time22-05-2025

  • Business
  • CBC

Metro Vancouver councillors call for better oversight after alleged misspending and fraud

A Surrey, B.C., councillor is calling for more oversight of city finances in light of allegations that a finance clerk defrauded the city of more than $2.5 million. Coun. Linda Annis said she wants the city to hire an independent auditor general. "It's very critical," Annis said. "The expertise that comes with an auditor general will go a long way to ensuring our taxpayers can have confidence in how city hall is managing and protecting their tax dollars." Annis first put forward the idea of an auditor general in 2021 and is revisiting it in light of a police investigation into allegations that a former City of Surrey finance clerk defrauded the city of more than $2.5 million by cutting hundreds of cheques to accounts associated with herself and her boutique cake baking business. According to a search warrant obtained by CBC News, the woman — who the CBC is not naming as she has not been charged — quit her job in the finance department in January 2024 after she was questioned about what appeared to be a forged signature on some paperwork. That irregularity allegedly led to the discovery of 183 fraudulent cheques written out to the woman's former legal name, her mother and her side business — drawing on funds kept in accounts that had been dormant for years. A warrant issued in March to search the woman's work computer claims Kam Grewal, the City of Surrey's chief financial officer, told police the woman "had been committing fraud since 2017, by exploiting her position and had defrauded the city of more than $2 million." Annis said cities that have an auditor general, like Vancouver and Toronto, "generally do find significant savings and waste through the processes." "I want to make sure we have the best policies and procedures in place now and going forward," Annis said. Coun. Pardeep Kooner, who chairs the audit committee, dismissed Annis's call for an independent auditor general, saying Surrey already has its finances scrutinized by an internal audit and compliance manager. "I'm not sure why we would spend close to $300,000 when we have two positions — one filled, one open — for internal audit," Kooner said. Metro Vancouver area councillors call for more provincial oversight Other city councillors in the Metro Vancouver area say they want the province to boost oversight of municipal spending following revelations of a police investigation into alleged misuse of a city hall gift card program in Richmond, B.C. Richmond's Kash Heed, New Westminster's Daniel Fontaine and Paul Minhas, and Burnaby's Richard Lee co-signed an open letter to Premier David Eby urging the province to either reinstate an office to oversee municipal spending or expand the mandate of B.C.'s auditor general to include municipal and regional government expenditures. B.C.'s Office of the Auditor General for Local Government stopped operations in 2021. Municipal Affairs Minister Ravi Kahlon said the province has no plans to revive the office. "At this point we're not bringing in additional measures," he said. Kahlon said that in the cases of Surrey and Richmond "the system is what caught the issue and brought it to light." Heed disputes that, saying Richmond's gift card controversy only came to light after reporting by Global News. "The minister might want to check his facts," Heed said. The City of Richmond said it purchased approximately $446,000 worth of gift cards from 2022 to 2024 as part of an employee recognition program, but found in a recent review that around $295,000 of them were unaccounted for. Richmond RCMP's serious crimes section is investigating. "We would be investing multimillion dollars to set up a system — that would cost a lot of money to the province — in the case of Richmond, to identify where $300,000 went," Kahlon said. Heed says it's much larger than $300,000, pointing to cost overruns at the Metro Vancouver waste water treatment plant, with a price tag that has ballooned to $4 billion. "This is the taxpayers' money," Heed said. "They want some confidence it's being handled with some accountability." Kahlon said "we know there's oversight needed," which is why the province requires local governments to make public their audited financials every year. Michael Favere-Marchesi, an associate professor of accounting and auditing at Simon Fraser University's Beedie School of Business, said a provincial auditor general for local governments must be notified of any financial irregularities, which is why a robust internal audit system is preferable. "My preference is always to have a city auditor because they get very familiar with all of the operations of the city," he said. Favere-Marchesi said a provincial auditor, by contrast, is brought in on a case-by-case basis and lacks the expertise about each municipality.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store