Property Standards

The Property Standards by-law is enforced based on written complaints only. The Complaint form must be completed, signed, and submitted to the by-law enforcement division.

The complainant’s identity is necessary to obtain additional information and keep the individual informed of the status of their complaint. The form must also identify the subject property with the owner’s name, address, and telephone number. Staff will only investigate problems identified in the form. Complaints are investigated by the property standards officer (PSO) in the order received.

Staff will process complaints from tenants in the manner described above, but only after the tenant has properly advised the landlord of the problems in writing and the landlord has been given a reasonable time to respond. The City will not accept a written complaint from a tenant unless it is accompanied by a copy of the letter to the landlord, and only if the landlord has not completed the repairs in a reasonable timeframe.

The PSO will contact the owner/landlord and confirm they have received your request for repairs in case of a tenant complaint and enquire what action will be taken to complete the repairs. The PSO will arrange a time for inspection when there is no indication the problem is being corrected.

After the PSO confirms the deficiencies, a notice will be sent to the property owner listing deficiencies to be repaired and giving a compliance date for completion. Staff will inspect after the compliance date has lapsed to confirm if the repairs have been done. When repairs are not completed by the deadline, an order may be issued, and if the owner does not appeal the order, it becomes final and binding, and repair work must be completed.

An owner may appeal an order issued by a PSO to the Property Standards Committee by completing a form included with the order and sending it to the committee within 14 days of being served. Appeals must be sent to the Property Standards Committee secretary at:

• City of Welland By-law Enforcement Division
• Civic Square, 60 East Main St., Welland, ON L3B 3X4
• bylaw_enforc@welland.ca

The Property Standards Committee may rescind, amend, or confirm the order and may extend the timeframe to complete the work.

Once an order is final and repairs have not been completed by the compliance deadline, the City may take legal action against property owners. Charges may be laid under the Building Code Act. The fines are a maximum of $50,000 for an individual and $100,000 for a corporation for a first offence. The City determines when charges will be laid, taking into consideration the severity of the problem, likelihood of conviction, and resources available for prosecution.

Suppose the complaint is about an abandoned building accessible to persons or an unsafe building collapsing. In that case, a verbal complaint will be sufficient, the PSO will investigate, and the matter may be dealt with through the unsafe building process.