Building Permit Dilema

[john70t]

Originally Posted by wdfifteen

All the snow and runoff water from that huge driveway runs directly into those buildings.
How fking dumb is that.

[island911]

Yes, but if it has been blessed by code it's right.

[stomachmonkey]

Originally Posted by wdfifteen

Because people can do some really dumb things.
One corner of the building in the foreground and almost all of the building in the background was constructed on my neighbor's property. At the time there was no requirement that you file a site plan when you build a structure.

Had a similar issue in my NY home.

PO had extended the garage a few feet. No permit.

The original structure was from the 40's.

Go to sell and find out no permit for the work, buyers bank wants all CO's.

Now I need to get it permitted but code has changed, set backs are higher than when it was originally built which it was grandfathered for but only in its original state.

The inspector did me solid, looking at the side down the property line it was pretty clear the back was closer to the line than the front.

He only measured from the front and I made it with a couple of inches to spare.

Had he been a dick and insisted on measuring the back I likely would have had to tear down the entire structure.

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by stomachmonkey

Now I need to get it permitted but code has changed, set backs are higher than when it was originally built which it was grandfathered for but only in its original state.

The inspector did me solid, looking at the side down the property line it was pretty clear the back was closer to the line than the front.

The county and the inspectors were really good to me.
I wanted to tear down the crappy little gingerbread shack and build a garage. In order to squeeze the size I wanted in between what we thought was the property line and the house I had to get a variance on the 5 foot setback rule for a garage. It took a couple of months, but I got the variance. But since the place had never been properly surveyed, the needed a survey and a site plan (one of those code changes).

This is where there is a kink in the story. Fifteen years ago I did a cover story for our magazine about an Chevy Advance Design panel truck - very rare truck. I had no idea at the time that the owner of the truck was the county land use administrator for the county I now live in - small world. He recognized me (I didn't remember him) and we hit it off, had a chat about his truck, how he was doing, etc. There is more to that story....
He mentioned that my property was zoned agricultural and if I was putting up a barn the setback rules didn't apply. Also, since it is a barn, there are no building permits required unless I intended to put in a water supply.
My garage instantly became a barn. I had to swear I was using it for my tractor, and truck, to store feed, and our garden equipment, which was all true. I did not mention that there would be a Porsche or two in there from time to time.

Unfortunately the survey showed the buildings were on my neighbor's property and the assumptions about where the property line was were all wrong. My neighbor, bless him, sold me 1000 square feet of land for $1 and we had to go through a whole rigamaroll that I still don't understand. I had to sell the newly resized property to a third party (our lawyer) who then sold it back to me. ???
I finally did get my new barn built. I put it 3 feet off the property line and I do keep all our garden tools, my tractor sometimes, and my truck in it all the time. And occasionally a 356.



My new BARN.

[URY914]

^^^ Nice barn.

[Zeke]

Originally Posted by island911

State inspectors were liable for defects that ultimately cause harm? Or independent contractor type inspectors?

Private licensed deputy inspectors as well as those employed by the jurisdiction in which the project is located, as I understood it at the time. As I said, that was once reported as a new law but IDK if it has been challenged in court or is 'off-the-books' now.

So, I looked it up. Turns out that this is only partially true and the circumstances are unique. Otherwise the city/county inspector is no more liable than the city/county for whom he works for.

Now a registered deputy is apt to lose his license just as a civil employee may lose his job for sub standard inspections.

Most all court cases have leaned towards the 'public duty doctrine' and decided against the plaintiffs (in these cases, a homeowner).

From that point on it requires more reading than I'm willing to do to substantiate my statement. Therefore, I will say I was wrong.

[1990C4S]

I spoke too soon...

I'm several inches too tall at the corner with the blue arrow...from the surface of my wooden deck to the pool deck is also 49".

I can landscape down the right side to get to 1.2 m (47.25"), I don't see how I can change the dimension to the cement deck.



Back to asking my neighbor, then applying for a variance.

Note how low my yard is compared to my neighbor, it's essentially ground level to him. But that reality doesn't matter to the city.