Eighteen-month timeline too long
Process for dealing with abandoned buildings in city adds to problem: committee
As P.E.I. faces a housing crisis from every angle, a Charlottetown city councillor is frustrated with part of the process.
Abandoned buildings in Charlottetown fall under a city bylaw that can compel repairs or demolition.
But the 18-month timeline for these orders is too long, Coun. Norman Beck suggested at a recent meeting of the protective and emergency services committee.
“I think maybe we might have to look at changing our parameters,” he said. “We do have properties, for whatever reason I do not understand, that sit vacant. I don’t think there’s any financial gain. I don’t get it. But we have to see if we can somehow get these properties back into our supply.”
When a building violates the dangerous, hazardous and unsightly premises bylaw, the city can issue a hazard compliance order.
Beck suggested beginning the “18-month clock” earlier in the process and possibly shortening the time frame.
OBSTACLES
Across P.E.I.’s capital, new foundations, beams and scaffolding are reshaping the landscape. But as these structures grow, bureaucratic obstacles have revealed themselves in Charlottetown.
City council and staff have touted a new official plan and zoning bylaw for months, but those documents remain in the planning stage.
Now, the question of abandoned buildings has become a monthly debate in committee and council meetings.
Police Chief Brad MacConnell presented a list of buildings to the protective and emergency services committee last month, and updated the committee again on March 20.
Eleven total buildings are on the list of abandoned structures, but some have been removed after the owner addressed concerns, MacConnell said.
None of the buildings are at a point where council can order repairs or a demolition because they have either complied with council orders or haven’t reached the 18-month limit for compliance, MacConnell said.
“It’s a very challenging situation for our inspectors and bylaw officers as we continue to try to work with these homeowners to deal with their properties. But we can only work within the framework of what we have.”
CLOCK
Mayor Philip Brown and Coun. Kevin Ramsay, who chairs the committee, agreed with the need to speed things up.
Another option for these owners, Brown suggested, is a vacancy tax that would encourage owners to use their property or sell it.
“We don’t have to reinvent the wheel to use other levers of administration or execution to deal with this issue. There are other levers out there.”