Man trying to rebuild home baffled by CBRM denying permit applications

Attempting to rebuild his house that was destroyed by fire this past summer, a Whitney Pier property owner says he is at a loss to understand why his permit applications to the Cape Breton Regional Municipality are being repeatedly denied. 

“I’m trying to build it back, and I’m waiting for permits to be approved,” said Peter Magliaro, whose Mt. Pleasant Street house went ablaze on July 18.

The fire nearly trapped four people — three children and a baby — living inside the home as the residence was engulfed in flames. But according to previous Cape Breton Post reports, Magliaro and an off-duty RCMP officer at the scene managed to help get the occupants out of the home.

A GoFundMe campaign had since been set up to recoup any losses as the home, according to Magliaro, was uninsured, and many of the family’s belongings were lost or damaged in the fire. But to date, the campaign — with a goal of collecting $26,000 — has only reached $805 after seven donations.

STOP-WORK ORDER ISSUED

“I applied for the permits about a week after the fire,” Magliaro said. “But no permits have been approved. It’s been a nightmare ever since.”

Worse for Magliaro, a stop-work order has been placed on the property and he’s been handed fines of $697.50 by a CBRM bylaw officer.

Why the stop-work order? 

“They (the CBRM) are trying to say that I’m too close to the curb,” Magliaro said. “I have a four-foot, one-inch setback on my own property. I’m 15 feet from the curb, and there’s 15 houses on this street that are between six and eight feet from the curb.”

Magliaro then pulled out a measuring tape to prove his point. From his house to the curbside, the tape measure reached exactly 15 feet and eight inches. 

“A new credit union down on Townsend and George streets is being built that’s five feet, six inches from the curb — and here I’m too close to the curb. That’s what they’re telling me,” Magliaro said.

But what sets Magliaro’s house apart from the remaining homes on his street is the location of the front side of the building — which faces toward the east, rather than toward the north. 

He said when the house was first built in 1975, when the City of Sydney existed pre-amalgamation, its original owner — a cousin of Magliaro’s — constructed it facing in an easterly direction as said cousin was told there were plans for a north-south street to be built in front of the property. 

“The city told him that he couldn’t turn the house this way (facing north),” Magliaro said. “He didn’t have enough land to build the house. So they told him that you had to build it that way and face that direction (east) because there’s going to be a street put in here. 

“And for 57 years, they never put the street in.” 

According to Nova Scotia’s Property Online database, the parcel of Magliaro’s land “was created by a subdivision that predates subdivision control or planning legislation or by-laws in the municipality, and therefore no subdivision approval was required for creation of this parcel.”

In the meantime, Magliaro said he’s been trying to follow all the proper permit procedures required to get the home rebuilt.  

“I had a surveyor come down to survey my property before I applied for the permits,” Magliaro said. “The surveyor came down and marked it. Then I called the city about getting the blueprints drawn up so I can replace my house, because I had to cut half the house off because it was burnt. 

“So I called them. I talked to them. I told them what I wanted to do, where I wanted to build it back, and how I wanted to build it back. And they said a side setback on your property is a four-feet, one-inch side setback. 

“My home is exactly 15 feet and eight inches from the curb. Yet the municipality told me that I’m still too close to the curb.” 

More infuriating for Magliaro, out-of-pocket payments are starting to add up tremendously, he said, and the whole process has left him beyond frustrated.

“I had to pay for two permits. I had to pay for a building permit for this on the front. I had to pay for a renovation permit to renovate my existing house,” Magliaro said.

“Now they’re refusing the plumber permit to plumb my house back. It cost me $2,000 for blueprints for that. Then it cost me another $1,000 because those blueprints weren’t good enough. Then they charged me for two permits that they turned me down on.  

“So they’re sinking me now for about $5,000.”

Despite not having permits, Magliaro said he’s nonetheless going ahead with the rebuild.

“I had no insurance on my house (when it caught fire). I’m trying to build this back out of my savings,” Magliaro said. “So that’s where I’m at right now. They can come here and fine me every day $697.50. I will never pay it.” 

Magliaro also provided the Post a recent letter sent from his wife, Joleen, asking for guidance and advice on how to deal with the predicament they’re in. 

“We have reached the point where we feel we have no choice but to make our situation public. We have now contacted Prime Minister Mark Carney, Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston, CBRM Mayor Cecil Clarke and District 12 Coun. Kim Sheppard-Campbell,” the letter reads. 

“We have sent letters explaining our situation and requesting assistance, accountability and a fair review of the obstacles we have encountered. We are looking for fairness, accountability, and the opportunity to rebuild our home. We are simply trying to rebuild the home we lost.”

‘CLEARLY A DISPUTE’

The Post attempted to reach the CBRM’s planning and bylaws departments to seek further explanation. However, no one from either department was made available for an interview.

Instead, the municipality’s spokesperson, Christina Lamey, would only say that the homeowner is being fined “for a construction project that’s not in compliance with bylaws, and the main issue is in regard to its distance from the street. 

“This is clearly a dispute between the homeowner and the bylaws that we use to dictate where houses can be placed in relation to streets and whatnot.”

Meanwhile, Sheppard-Campbell, whose constituency includes Whitney Pier, acknowledged she did hear from Magliaro and his wife, “but I only have their part of the story,” she said.  

“I am planning on having a meeting with our solicitor and our planning department. I’ve reached out to them to ask them to meet me so I can understand more of what’s going on.”

— With files from Nicole Sullivan