Moose Jaw family says city ignored 8 years of neighbour complaints

A Moose Jaw family says years of complaints about a deteriorating neighbouring property have produced little action, leaving elderly homeowners frustrated and concerned about safety.

Michelle Seida-Dodd says her family and her parents, who have lived in their home for more than five decades, have repeatedly raised concerns about a nearby house with the City of Moose Jaw through the city’s mobile app, as well as phone calls, emails and meetings with city officials.

Seida-Dodd says the family’s concerns extend beyond the appearance of the property.

She alleges broken windows have left the home easily accessible and says neighbours have repeatedly observed both people and animals entering the building.

“We have seen mice, skunks, cats and children go in and out of this house,” she said.

According to Seida-Dodd, the condition of the property has become increasingly frustrating for her parents, who still enjoy spending time in their yard and entertaining family and friends.

“My parents work hard on their yard and really like to entertain,” she said.

Seida-Dodd said concerns about the property have been raised with the City of Moose Jaw for roughly eight years through various channels.

She alleges complaints submitted through the city’s reporting app were often later marked as resolved despite no visible changes to the property.

She said family members have repeatedly followed up with administration but feel little progress has been made.

Seida-Dodd said her brother met with city administration during a recent visit to Moose Jaw.

“He’s coming all the way down from Toronto,” she said.

“And also, since he was down in September, my brother has made several phone calls to the city and it’s, ‘We’ll get back to you, we’ll get back to you,’ and no one is getting back to him.”

According to Seida-Dodd, she contacted the city manager about a week before placing a sign on her parents’ property criticizing how the situation has been handled.

“I did not hear anything back,” she said.

The family subsequently placed a sign on the front lawn of the property.

Seida-Dodd said police later attended after receiving a complaint about the sign and related social media posts. She said the responding officer advised the family they were not required to remove the sign.

“We said we will not be taking the sign down,” she said.

Permit and enforcement issues

Seida-Dodd said the family became particularly frustrated after learning the property owner had been given additional time to comply with a city order related to foundation work allegedly completed without the required permit.

“They did not apply for a building permit, so they received an order to comply and they needed to either get a building permit for the unpermitted foundation work or obtain a demolition permit,” she said.

Seida-Dodd said the extension was difficult for her family to understand after years of complaints.

According to Seida-Dodd, the owner later received an extension rather than facing immediate enforcement action.

Seida-Dodd said several residents have commented online that they have also reported concerns about the property over the years.

She further alleges a nearby neighbour has been cutting the property’s lawn because it has not been maintained and because residents need access to nearby community mailboxes.

“That’s the kind of neighbours that my parents have,” she said.

“That’s the kind of people that live in that neighbourhood. They care about each other.”

At the heart of the dispute, Seida-Dodd says, is a desire to help her parents continue enjoying the home where they have lived for more than five decades.

She said her parents, both 78, are worn down by what she describes as years of unsuccessful attempts to have the issue addressed.

“It’s hard for them to entertain people and this house is there,” she said. “They’re exhausted.”

Seida-Dodd said she, her husband and her brother have increasingly taken on the issue themselves in an effort to ease the burden on their parents.

“It’s frustrating when you want to take care of your parents and they enjoy still living in their home and they have to deal with this on a daily basis,” she said.

“We’re just trying to take care of our parents and let them enjoy the home they love.”

City of Moose Jaw issues response

In a written statement, the City of Moose Jaw said it is aware of the concerns and “is addressing the matter through the applicable legislation, bylaws, and enforcement processes.”

The city added that it cannot provide further details regarding an individual property, complaint, investigation or enforcement matter.

“The city has a duty under The Local Authority Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act to protect personal information and information relating to complaints, inspections, compliance, investigations and enforcement, and cannot disclose such information unless there is lawful authority to do so.”

Regarding submissions made through the ‘Report an Issue’ feature on MooseJaw.ca or the City of Moose Jaw app, the city said:

“‘Resolved’ for bylaw matters would typically indicate that a bylaw officer has attended a site for inspection or that a matter has been referred to another department for review.”

Property owner says COVID, costs and conflict stalled renovation

One of the owners of the property says the home’s unfinished condition does not reflect the amount of work and money invested in it over the years.

Jeremy Hansen said significant renovations have been completed since he purchased the property around 2018.

While Hansen acknowledges the property remains in an unfinished state, he said its current appearance does not accurately reflect progress that has been made.

“We’ve put tens of thousands of dollars into this place,” Hansen said.

Hansen said the completed work has included $60,000 in foundation repairs and basement renovations, the installation of a new roof on the home and garage, soffit, fascia and eavestroughs, among others.

Hansen agreed the property’s appearance remains a source of frustration.

“It’s an ugly house. It’s ugly. I completely agree with (the neighbour),” Hansen said.

While Hansen disputes suggestions that the property has been abandoned and says several factors have contributed to delays in the project.

Among the factors slowing down progress, Hansen asserts, are conflicts with neighbours that arose during the early stages of the project and continue to this day.

He also cited major disruptions caused by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and sharp increase in construction costs that followed.

“We didn’t expect COVID to hit,” he said. “When it did, we put a pause on it because we weren’t sure what was happening and the price of everything was insane.”

Hansen said unresolved disputes when work resumed in 2021 and 2022 increased difficulties working on the property.

What followed was a series of complaints to various authorities that often accompanied attempts to undertake renovations at the site.

Hansen claims rising tensions surrounding the project have made himself, contractors and other workers reluctant to return to the property.

Hansen described the situation as “non-stop” and said, “We’re on eggshells anytime we even go around the property.”

Further allegations regarding interactions between Hansen, contractors, and neighbouring residents were also made. Those claims have not been independently verified by Discover Moose Jaw staff.

One of the key concerns raised by neighbours involved foundation work they allege was completed without the required building permit.

Hansen disputes that allegation, saying a building permit was in place when the work was being done.

“We had a building permit,” he said.

Hansen said the permit was later cancelled by the city. He maintained, however, that the permit had been in place while the work was being done.

Hansen said a building permit is currently open for the property and that he remains in contact with the city as it addresses the outstanding requirements.

He also said previous complaints about the project resulted in additional scrutiny. According to Hansen, a complaint to Occupational Health and Safety led to another engineer being brought in to complete a shoring report, which he said added roughly $3,000 to the project.

“Anytime the city has asked anything from us, we’ve done it,” he said.

He also maintained the property has been inspected by multiple agencies over the years.

“The city’s been in there. The police have been in there. The fire crew have been in there,” Hansen said

Hansen also disputed claims that community members have been maintaining the property because the owners have failed to do so.

He said a nearby resident cuts the grass through an informal arrangement.

“What he does is use our garage in exchange for him cutting the grass for us,” Hansen said.

Hansen said he has also cut the grass himself at times when the neighbour was unavailable.

Although Hansen said the original plan was to complete the renovations, he’s no longer certain that will happen.

According to Hansen, siding, windows and other building materials purchased for future work remain at the property awaiting installation.

However, after years of delays, rising costs and ongoing challenges surrounding the project have led him to consider cutting his losses.

“It’s mentally exhausting,” he said. “Once we’re done with the city and that new building permit, I think we are just going to put it up for sale.”

He said putting the property back on the market may be the most practical path forward, although he questioned whether doing so would ultimately resolve the dispute.

“If we sell it, it’s just going to be somebody else working there,” he said.

While saying the property was originally purchased with plans to renovate it, Hansen acknowledged the future of the project is increasingly uncertain.

“We’re just at a loss,” he said.