City building inspectors feel like their jobs have become a joke after Surrey council dropped litigation against more than 70 illegal and unsafe homes just weeks before the last civic election.

"When you're trained to do a job, then you're trained to ignore it for whatever reason, it really is demoralizing," said Laurie Larsen, the president of Surrey's unionized employees.

"We have quite a few inspectors and quite a few bylaw officers that are most affected, who really feel like the public is laughing at them – like 'you can't touch me,' that kind of attitude."

Just weeks before the last civic election in November 2008, Surrey council unanimously voted to drop litigation against more than 70 people who had illegally built additions on their homes – mostly by enclosing decks.

The move to put the lawsuits in abeyance came at the request of a new lobby group known as the Surrey Ratepayers Association (SRA), the same organization now asking the city to review house sizes.

On Sept. 26, 2008, Kalvinder Bassi, director of the SRA, asked council "direct that all actions by the city related to seeking compliance with the RF zone (single family residential) related to unauthorized additions or deck enclosures be held in abeyance."

It was less than two months before the civic election, and Bassi brought with him a petition with more than 4,000 names on it.

When the city chose to hold off on legal action against the homeowners who undertook illegal construction, it also started a process of re-examining all single family residential zones.

On Sept. 29, 2008, council decided that "actions being taken by the City to address existing unauthorized house additions as described in the subject letter be held in abeyance pending Council consideration of the (staff) report and recommendations."

The city is currently undertaking a review of the RF zone that would increase the allowable house size from 3,550 to 4,550 square feet on a lot of more than 6,000 square feet.

The increase in size could render most of the unauthorized expansions legal.

Bassi said Monday he made no assurances about political support from the group in the upcoming election, which was seven weeks away.

"No, no, that's stretching it," Bassi said. "Our only motive is to have a solution for this, which has been ongoing."

He said some of the SRA members are subject to the city's pending litigation, but he wouldn't say how many.

"We don't take count, we just sign up members," Bassi said.

As to what should be done with the illegal buildings, Bassi said "that's beyond my scope" to answer.

"It's up to the authorities, it's not up to me," Bassi said.

Coun. Bob Bose said he hadn't received any political pressure from the ratepayers to support putting the legal action into abeyance, but noted Surrey is putting itself into a legally tenuous position.

"We're in a very perilous situation with bylaw enforcement," Bose said.

Larsen said it's more a problem of shifting policy, which is hard on city staff.

"They spend a lot of time enforcing the (B.C. Building) Code, and to just say we'll turn a blind eye till whenever, it is demoralizing for them," Larsen said.

South Surrey's Ernie Brauer is also disheartened by the city's inaction on its own bylaws.

Brauer complained to the city about illegal suites near his South Surrey home in 2005, as there's an existing restrictive covenant in the area making them illegal.

"Subdivisions have been approved with restrictive covenants prohibiting suites, however the city is not required to enforce them," Surrey's manager of bylaws wrote in response to Brauer in August, 2005. "Individual owners may, however, take legal action against an offending property owner."

Brauer wants to know why it's his responsibility to take legal action against people who don't obey this city's bylaws.

The next meetings regarding changes to Surrey home sizes will be held at the following times and locations:

• Tuesday, Nov. 3, Newton Community Hall, 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

• Wednesday, Nov. 4, Surrey Arts Centre, 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

• Thursday, Nov. 5, Clayton Heights Secondary School, 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m

kdiakiw@surreyleader.com