NVD council to take another
look at illegal secondary suites

NORTH VANCOUVER District staff has recommended
that council renew its efforts to register owners of illegal
secondary suites in the municipality.

The original municipal cal! for
illegal suite owners to step for-
ward so that the suites could be
inspected and identified for even-
tual closure met with marginal
public response.

Five years ago it was estimated
that 2,554 secondary suites were
located in the municipality. In
1987 council adopted a rezoning
bylaw to allow legal inlaw suites
within single-family homes. In
1988, the municipality initiated the
registered illegal suite phase-out
program for non-family second-

By Michael Becker
News Reporter

ary suites.

By the end of the registration
period, the district had received
757 applications. But by March of
this year, only 297 registrations
were completed. According to a
district staff report to council on
the issue, ‘*The property-use in-
speciors have encountered con-
tinual procrastination on behalf of
many of the applicants. The prob-

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re
NORTH VANCOUVER
DISTRICT COUNCIL

lem is compounded by the ac-
cumulation of fees which are to be
paid before registration. Pro-
crastination exists at each stage of
the registration process.”’

Staff limitations — the district
employs two full-time public
spectors who are already working
to capacity — and delaying tactics
on the part of applicants result in
a slow inspection process as of-
ficials attempt to determine health
and safety, building, plumbing,
gas and electrical standards within
the suites.

A sticking point for some illegal
suite owners considering registra-
tion is the district policy to charge
for sewer and water service for the
Suites,

In October, illegal suite owners
who applied to register in 1988
but didn’t complete the process
were asked by the district to sub-
mit an agreement and payment for
water and sewer service for the
period from 1988 to 1990 i
clusive.

Among the latest recommenda-
tions to council, however, is to
drop the sewer and water rate fees
for registered illegal suites. Pres-
ent registrants who have paid such
fees could have previous payments

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