New Westminster is taking action against a single-family home that once contained 14 suites.
At a special meeting on Feb. 10, council heard that staff received reports about “heavy construction” on a Pembina Street property in Queensborough in November 2023. A report to council included numerous letters to the owner, inspection reports, and photos from inspections of the property.
“For the last 11 months, we've been attempting to seek compliance in a non-compliant situation that is serious. It has serious life-safety violations,” said Serena Trachta, deputy director of building planning and development. “So, about 11 months ago, we identified that a single-family home had been retrofitted into 14 suites and rented out to different people that were living there in substandard conditions, without proper fire separations, without proper smoke alarms, without proper exiting, without proper construction materials.”
Trachta said city staff have been working with the property owner to rectify those conditions. While there has been “some improvement,” she said there has not been a significant amount of improvements made to the home.
“We had 14 suites before with 14 tenants, and now we have close to, we believe, seven tenants there,” she told council.
At Monday’s special meeting, Trachta told council that the house has livable space in the floodplain.
“The homeowner is allowed to use that livable space for herself and her family, but is not allowed to rent that out, and that's what's been occurring now,” she said. “So, we have concerns for folks in the floodplain.”
Trachta said there has been illegal construction done, without permits, at the back of the home to create additional living space.
“People are living in a situation that hasn't been permitted. We're concerned about the structural integrity of that addition,” she said. “We have pretty significant life-safety concerns for the occupants of the home, and we are seeking your assistance in putting a notice.”
A staff report stated that a February 2024 interior inspection of the property found the house had been divided into 14 separate rooms; one was a bachelor suite, and the others shared kitchen and bathroom facilities. The city had no records of a building permit for any of these additions.
“The city routinely places notices regarding filing of building regulations on property tax files. This practice helps to give prospective buyers notice regarding any outstanding violations, should they inquire about the status of taxes for the property prior to purchases,” said the report. “However, prospective buyers who do not inquire about the status of a property’s taxes, and other parties with a registered charge on title, such as mortgages, are not assisted by a notice on taxes.”
In the report, staff requested council approve a Section 57 notice on title for the property — to protect future purchasers and lenders, as well as the city by managing risk of legal liability for failing to warn.
The package of materials presented to council included an MLS listing from January 2025, at which time the house was listed at $1.5 million.
At the conclusion of Monday’s meeting, council voted unanimously to direct the corporate officer to file a Section 57 notice in the land title office with respect to the property. The notice states the property is in violation of building regulations and more information about the violations is available at city hall.
Trachta said there are some options for the owner to choose to have the notice removed.
“Essentially, we need the unpermitted work removed or legalized,” she said. “If there's going to be a suite, it would need to be legalized, or she may not choose to have a suite there. So, there's various paths, but the general end is that we get ourselves into a compliance situation that's providing safety for the residents.”
Mona Teymory, the home’s owner, spoke at Monday’s meeting.
“I am merely here today just to witness what decision is made so I can move forward to comply. I never intended it for to get to this point,” she said. “I apologize for how far this has gotten.”
Teymory said some of the previous tenants have moved out of the home, and those remaining in the house are family members. She said she is moving forward with getting a building permit.
“I know that the staff have been trying their best to work with me, and that I just unfortunately hit a lot of brick walls trying to do the best I can in my circumstance as a single-providing mother and multiple jobs, juggling life,” she said.
“So, for the record, I'm willing to comply and do what's required to ensure safety for my family in my home.”
