Yellowknife (Feb 20/04) - Yellowknife resident Wayne Overbo says the city is losing credibility in his eyes after it refused to do anything about his neighbour's 2.7 metre (nine-foot ) high fence.

Bigelow Crescent resident Wayne Overbo says City Hall refuses to do anything about his neighbour's nine-foot tall fence even though it contravenes the zoning bylaw. - Mike W. Bryant/NNSL photo

The city's zoning bylaw specifically states no person shall build a fence taller than two metres or 6.5 feet, but so far Overbo's complaint about his neighbour's fence has fallen on deaf ears.

"What should've been a simple correction of an infraction of the zoning bylaw has instead been nine months of non-cooperation, mixed messages and delays from administration," Overbo told city councillors Monday at a meeting of the municipal services committee.

Overbo said the problem began when he and his wife, Elsie De Roose, returned home from vacation to their condominium on Bigelow Crescent last May to find their neighbours, Noel Stanislaus and Rhona Graney, had built the 4.8 metre (16 feet) fence between their yards.

Overbo said last summer was marked by sunless afternoons in their backyard, where the plants wouldn't grow and shadows grew long far into the day.

"We don't have any afternoon or evening sun," he said. "Even on the longest day of the year."

Shortly afterwards he headed down to City Hall to complain, where he said a development officer told him to talk to his neighbour and the condominium association first, and if that didn't work, then he should come back.

In July, the condo association held a meeting where all five members, including his fence-building neighbours, voted in a bylaw ruling that all fences built would abide by the city zoning bylaw.

Despite that, the fence stayed.

The resulting frequent trips down to City Hall were not successful, said Overbo.

"We said, 'please take care of us,' at which point they said, 'no,'" he said. "We were told that the fence did not disrupt the harmonious nature of our backyard."

Who's calling the shots?

At Monday's meeting, several councillors expressed bewilderment at how the zoning bylaw can be so specific, yet administration still managed to apply it how they saw fit.

"You're saying the development officer can use his own judgment. Where in the bylaw does it say that?" asked Coun. Bob Brooks.

Monte Christensen, manager of planning and lands, told council that it was in the development officer's opinion that the over-height fence didn't need a permit.

Christensen noted that a section of the bylaw allows development officers some discretion if the variance is 10 per cent or less.

They can allow an even taller fence as long as they notify the neighbours.

Coun. Dave McCann said perhaps it's time the bylaw was revisited to avoid any confusion in the future.

"I think (administration's) view is that discretion is discretion," said McCann. "What it means to me for the sake of the ordinary citizen is that we have to have this stuff written in more detail."

Stanislaus said when they built the fence they based the height on an already existing but shorter extension of fence from their house when they moved in to the townhouse back in 2002.

He said if Overbo had approached them in person after they did the work they would've taken it down.

"This whole thing could've been avoided if he had come by and said, 'please take the fence down,'" said Stanislaus.

He added that Overbo and his wife have presented them with a few annoyances of their own, including motion sensor lights that turn on every time they walk out onto their deck.

After they built the fence, they installed a hot tub, to which Overbo complained about the noise it made, said Stanislaus.

"We had a bylaw officer come by and do a decibel check on it," and it passed he said.

Overbo admitted that he didn't approach his neighbours in person immediately but did send them letters after they returned from their vacation.