Month after finishing home build, owners told to scrap plans due to administrative error

A month after finishing their newly built home complete with a basement suite, a Manitoba couple has been told to scrap their plans due to an administrative error made by the rural municipality.

A month after finishing their newly built home complete with a basement suite, a Manitoba couple has been told to scrap their plans due to an administrative error made by the rural municipality.

Chantelle Dueck and her husband, who live in New Bothwell, Man., had just completed their home with a 953-square-foot basement suite earlier this year, only to be told they were never allowed to have a basement suite to begin with.

"Very, I guess, disappointed after putting all that work and everything (in)," Dueck told CTV News, saying a "substantial" amount of money went into the basement suite.

Jim Funk, the reeve of the RM of Hanover which includes New Bothwell, said the homeowners didn't do anything wrong and filled out the permit properly in 2021, but the part identifying the basement suite was missed by administrative staff.

"So when it came to the inspection, I guess the final inspection, then it was noted that there was a suite downstairs," said Funk.

Following the inspection, Dueck then filed a new permit for the basement suite. However, the Local Urban District committee (LUD) of New Bothwell opposed it and outlined the reasons in a letter to Hanover council.

Among the reason, the LUD said the homeowner had plans to make it a multi-family dwelling, which wasn't the original plan for the neighbourhood.