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Mono’s property standards bylaw

June 21, 2019   ·   0 Comments

As you may be aware, I have had an unfortunate experience with our new neighbours who moved in next door to me in 2015 and who have been bringing in used and broken down vehicles onto their property, ten feet from my property line and repairing them in their garage.  In Nov. 2017, there were nineteen disused vehicles on their property.  They then disappear from their property.  A member of your staff advised me to contact OMVIC however, while this organization is aware of some activity they have been unsuccessful in stopping these activities.  There is a concerted effort being made now in Mono to change the Property Standard bylaws. This is a notification about what is happening in this regard at present.  Please see below.

For many people, it is a privilege to live in the spacious surroundings of the countryside. However, buying a home in the country can mean different things to different people. For our neighbours who moved onto ten long narrow acres of land, like ours, in 2015, it provided the space for activities that eventually devalued my property by $39,000.00. These ‘activities’ brought into focus for me the Property Standard Bylaws of Mono, something I was not familiar with prior to this time. Unfortunately Mono’s present Property Standard Bylaws are not comprehensive enough nor enforceable enough to discourage such ‘activities’. However, the Private Nuisance Torte (a law) states that landowners have the right to the unimpaired condition of their property and to the reasonable comfort and convenience in its occupation. It is when a person’s enjoyment and use of his land becomes a nuisance to a neighbour and the consequences of his or her acts extend to the land of his neighbour it is actionable in tort by the neighbour whose property and enjoyment of their property becomes compromised by a neighbour’s actions. Thus, good Property Standard Bylaws set by a municipality are necessary for the protection of the residential home owner and property taxpayer.

Until the early 1990s, Mono relied largely on the Garbage Bylaws which were used to bring offending properties into some sort of compliance but the difficulties in bringing properties in the country into compliance has never been easy. Our present Property Standard Bylaws are unfortunately lacking in their effectiveness. With the re-election last year of John Creelman as Deputy Mayor, who served as Reeve of Mono during the 1990s and subsequently worked in the court system in Orangeville, there is now a collective effort by council to bring the Town of Mono’s Property Standard Bylaws into a more up-to-date, comprehensive and enforceable state. Thus, the Planning Environment and Natural Heritage Committee (PENHC) has been formed. This committee, led by Mr. Bob McCrea and a diverse group of Mono residents, is working hard to formulate new Property Standard Bylaws and advise council. This committee will be holding an Open House meeting for the residents of Mono in the coming months to share the proposed new Property Standard Bylaws and they ask that residents of Mono attend this meeting to share their own issues and concerns. The time, location and date are to be announced.

The purchase of your home and property is likely to be the most important financial investment of your life. Property Standard Bylaws are created for your protection as a homeowner and property taxpayer. Please make a point of attending this meeting when it is announced.

Sandra Small Proudfoot

Mono. 

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