Stop Work Order - can Town really do this?

[ARDG001]

What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state?MASSACHUSETTS -

I've started filing building permit paperwork with the town over 9 months ago. Project involves adding new kitchen addition to home (c. 1860) listed on National Register of Historic Places. My home is literally 5 doors down from Town Hall.

The Building Inspector rejected the plans twice. 1st time was due to structural questions. 2nd time was due to by-law stating that all new construction must have a 30' setback from the street - said we just needed to obtain a variance.

We applied for a variance with Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) in January 2005 and a public hearing was held in February. The appeal was easily obtained after a five minute meeting. As result of this appeals process, our deed was updated to note the specific reason hardship..." the location of the well, septic system, and the Xyz River prevents the addition from being located anywhere else on the lot."

After a 21-day waiting period following the ZBA public hearing, the town hall issued the building permit to us on March 16, 2005.

Shortly after the excavation was completed and foundation was about to be poured, the local Conservation Commission (ConCom) said we were building too close to the river and had to stop all work until Notice of Intent paperwork was completed.

Rather than risk fines and jail time, we stopped construction while Notice of Intent (NOI) paperwork is completed (which involves hiring an engineer and holding another public hearing - inviting same people that were at the meeting 3 months ago).


Can the town legally tell us to stop AFTER we obtained a building permit? - especially after a public hearing & overlapping personnel?

Note:
a board member of the ZBA is also a member of ConCom.
the secretary for ZBA is also secretary for ConCom

Other towns in the area will not issue a building permit unless the project is in compliance with all local, state and federal laws.

As I mentioned, the home is 5 doors away from town hall in a small village. It's not like we were trying to pull a fast one here!

During the NOI process the chairman of the ConCom has claimed that I have altered one of his e-mail messages that dealt with a scheduled site visit. This accusation was e-mailed to other board members as well as the town selectmen. As an IT professional working in the banking industry, I do not take these claims lightly. I consider this statement libel.


Why didn't the Town Hall flag this when we went through the building permit process? They flagged other issues?

Why didn't the Town Hall flag this when we had public hearing with zoning board of appeals (ZBA)?




My contractor had to move onto other jobs to keep his crew busy.

So, now my historic home is in a state of disrepair, rubble foundation and 1/4 of exterior walls are exposed to elements. It's been a wet spring & I'm concerned about mold.

Can I hold the town responsible for this hold up in the project?
They already collected our building permit fee. Why did they bother to issue it if we can't use it?

Can I sue the chairman for libel?

Thanks!

X

 

[John Se]

strange but believable

seems like the conservation commission shold have seen you plans before the city issued the permit, look like their fu. but in any case I think they can do it because they did do it. Never expect too much from civil servants, they only have their jobs cause they usually have security and benefits not pay. so they tend to attract that type of person who is not really a high achiever. Just remember to be very patient with the people, theytend to be do-gooders and workyou way through it--keep us posted

 

[Caterina82]

My word! I'm sorry for your ridiculous predicament. You're trying to do everything by the book and they are the ones fouling up.

In a decently organized process, it would have been routine to send your permit request around to all involved board chairs (eg. ConCom) for review and signature prior to issuing the building permit. I would say it's a little late now for them to be throwing their weight around.

You do have a host of potential damages here, and some functional loss of your home, albeit temporary we hope. John Se is correct in his assessment that sometimes the greatest minds are not attracted to public service positions. The altered e-mail claim and the fact that two of the ConCom folks were well aware of your project as being part of the Zoning Board tells me there are probably some insidious ulterior motives here. That, or it's a sad attempt for covering up a previous oversight of the proximity of your project to the river.

My advice would be to hire the best attorney you could find who has experience in suing municipalities. See if you can find someone from a nearby town who may not be affected by your small villages' politics.

Let us know how this progresses.

Not an attorney, just work in the real estate industry.