A noisy neighbour, a parking ticket fight and a mysterious home addition: Ombudsman reports on how to battle city hall
The ombudsman is the “office of last resort”, the person Torontonians can turn to when city officials can’t or won’t settle complaints of unfairness.
TheStar.com
Sept. 21, 2017
David Rider
A man robbed of his chance to object to a neighbour’s home addition, a driver robbed of his chance to fight parking tickets, and a woman robbed of her ability to stop noise blasting through her wall.
City of Toronto Ombudsman Susan Opler heard the residents’ complaints and reported Thursday on her attempts to take city staff to task.
The ombudsman is the “office of last resort”, the person Torontonians can turn to when city officials can’t or won’t settle complaints of unfairness.
Below are summaries of the three cases Opler highlighted in one of her regular reports:
- A man knew nothing about his neighbour building a two-storey addition that, he says, looks directly into his backyard until the addition started going up. He learned that it was approved by the Etobicoke-York committee of adjustment at a hearing he knew nothing about.
City staff told the ombudsman an apparent computer glitch resulted in 20 of 77 affected neighbours not getting notices of the hearing. They later sent apology notes but have not found the source of the glitch.
Staff have been told to be diligent about checking everyone gets notices but “cannot guarantee that a similar error will not happen again.”
The ombudsman told city staff to monitor any similar glitches and report back to her.
- A North York woman complained to licensing staff about “construction noise” and other racket coming from the other side of her semi-detached house. City staff gave her a log to chronicle noise but told her not to include hammering, drilling and other construction noise.
A supervisor later said such noise would be considered but, by the time charges were drafted, the six-month limitation period had passed and bylaw charges could not be laid. Licensing gave the ombudsman a list of 18 other times charges were foregone because they came too late.
The ombudsman’s recommendations include a supervisor being immediately assigned to the woman’s case; clarifying with staff how to handle noise complaints; ensuring complainants know about the six-month limitation; and considering the feasibility of an “alternative dispute resolution” system to settle such disputes.
- A Quebec man complained the city wouldn’t let him fight three parking tickets in court. Staff wrongly told him there was no way for non-Ontarians to do so, then said he could fight the newest ticket but gave contradictory information on what ownership information he needed to provide.
City staff told the ombudsman that, under the court-based parking ticket system now being phased out, they had no way to pursue out-of-province drivers.
However, such drivers could be towed if caught in Toronto again because of an automatic-tow rule for cars with three or more unpaid tickets.
The ombudsman told staff to determine how to provide the legal right of trial for non-Ontarians ticketed before Aug. 28, under the old system.
She was assured that under the new city-run administrative tribunal system for parking tickets, non-Ontarians have equal appeal rights.
The city cancelled the Quebecer’s tickets.
