The Regional District of Nanaimo is accusing a developer of issuing fraudulent occupancy permits for some of the homes it was building.
In a release, the RDN accuses Ballard Fine Homes of issuing four occupancy permits which is something, after multiple inspections, only a government body can do.
The RDN says some homes may have people illegally living in them with staff becoming aware of the problem after a homeowner contacted them.
An RDN statement says “The nature of the situation prompted the RDN to investigate; leading to the discovery that a fraudulent permit was allegedly given to the homeowner by an employee of Ballard Fine Homes. A review of active building files with Ballard Fine Homes resulted in the discovery of three other fraudulent permits allegedly being given to property owners in the RDN.”
The RDN has now notified the homeowners and Oceanside RCMP.
Don Ballard, Ballard Fine Home’s Director, says he was shocked and surprised by the allegations and he says it was an independent contractor, retained by them to provide project management services, that altered the occupancy permits.
A statement says the company “is seeking to work with the four affected customers to ensure that these customers have proper permitting. The independent contractor in question is no longer working for Ballard Fine Homes Ltd.”
“Ballard Fine Homes would like to apologize for this oversight and for any inconvenience to our clients. All of us at Ballard Fine Homes has worked very hard since our inception to earn your trust and the respect of our communities.”
Both Ballard and the RDN confirm two of the homes involved have since been granted occupancy permits, which allow people to live there. Three of the homes are in French Creek and the fourth is north of Qualicum Beach.
Ballard Fine Homes has built hundreds of homes in the region during the past decade.
Yesterday, an engineer had his license revoked after admitting to designing a structurally deficient residential rental tower in Langford. The building had its occupancy permit revoked in December of 2019.
Kendall Hanson
