Property Standards By-Law

Property Standards By-law Appeal Process 

General Overview 

  • The Property Standards Committee hears appeals from Orders issued under the Property Standards  By-law No. 2016-17 respecting properties that do not meet minimum property standards set out in the By-law 
  • The Committee is composed of five members, including one Chair. 
    • They act as an autonomous and independent administrative tribunal. 
    • The Town is one of the two adversarial parties before the Committee in any hearing, the other being the owner who may be the registered owner, the person receiving rent, or an occupant responsible for repair and maintenance. 
  • After holding a hearing, the Committee may confirm, modify or quash the Order and/or extend the time for complying with the Order issued under the Property Standards By-law.

Appeal Notice 

  • An Appeal Notice may be filed by a property owner, an agent authorized by the property owner or an occupant. A copy of the Appeal Notice is available online or in person at Town Hall. 
    • If you are acting as an agent for appeal, please complete this form (PDF) . 
  • An Appeal Notice must be sent by registered mail or personally delivered to the Secretary Treasurer of the Property Standards Committee on or before the appeal deadline date set out in the Property Standards Order. 
  • The appeal deadline requires that the Notice of Appeal be filed within 14 days after being served with the Order (being within 14 days after the Order is served personally or within 19 days after the Order is sent by registered mail). 
  • A non-refundable appeal fee of $420.00 must accompany the Appeal Notice. Please make all cheques or money orders payable to the Town of Lincoln. Do not send cash in the mail. 
  • Please note:  where the Secretary Treasurer  determines  that  the  Appeal  Notice  is  incomplete  (e.g. missing reasons for the appeal or the fee) or late, the Secretary Treasurer will not accept the appeal.

Hearing Notice 

  • Upon receipt of an Appeal Notice, the Secretary Treasurer will send a Hearing Notice to the Appellant by registered mail at least 21 days prior to the hearing. 
  • The Hearing Notice includes the date, time and location of the hearing, and advises the Appellant that the matter may be heard and decided by the Committee in their absence if they do not attend the hearing. 
  • Hearings are held at Town Hall on every fourth Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. unless otherwise indicated on the Hearing Notice.

Disclosure

  • At least 14 days in advance of the hearing, the Town of Lincoln Representative, who attends the hearing in support of the Order, will send a disclosure package to the Appellant, which may include the following: 
    • A copy of the title search showing ownership of the property 
    • A copy of the signed order 
    • A copy of the witnesses’ notes 
    • A copy of the photographs taken by the witnesses during inspections. 
    • A copy of any relevant maps, drawings or other documents 
    • A list of any additional material that may be used at the hearing, such as additional photographs of the property 
    • A request for disclosure from the Appellant including a deadline date. 
  • If the Appellant has any material, such as documents or photographs, that they wish to use during the hearing, the Appellant will disclose the information/document(s) to the Town of Lincoln Representative at least 14 days in advance of the hearing, or as requested in the disclosure package. 
  • Despite section 1 and 2, if either the Town of Lincoln Representative or the Appellant brings forward material that has not been disclosed to the other party in accordance with those sections, the Chair of the Committee may recess the hearing to allow the other party to review the material. 
    • When the hearing resumes, the other party will be given the opportunity to state any objections to the use of the material during the hearing. 
    • The Committee will decide, based on the submissions of the parties, whether or not the material may be referred to or introduced into evidence.

The Hearing 

  1. All Appellants and/or their representatives must sign in. 
  2. The Chair will call the meeting to order. 
  3. The Chair will ask Committee members if they have any conflicts of interest. 
  4. The Secretary Treasurer will advise of any changes to the Agenda or if additional correspondence has been received. 
  5. The Chair will ask the Town of Lincoln Representative, who sits at one of two tables facing the Committee, whether there are any requests for adjournment or Orders that have been complied with. The Committee may deal with these matters first. 
  6. The Chair will state the municipal address of the property for which the appeal is being heard, and the Appellant will take a seat at the unoccupied table facing the Committee. 
  7. Hearings of the Committee are open to the public and documents which are submitted to the Committee will form part of the public record. If you will be providing any information about intimate personal or financial matters, advise the Committee at the start of the hearing. The Committee will decide, having regard to both the interests of any person affected and the principle that hearings be open to the public, whether or not the hearing will be open or closed to the public. 
  8. The Town of Lincoln Representative will present its case first. An opening submission may be made. 
  9. The Town of Lincoln Representative will call their witness(es). Once called, a witness is seated at the witness table and is affirmed. 
  10. At the conclusion of the testimony of each of the Town of Lincoln Representative’s witness(es), the Appellant and then the Committee may ask their own questions of the witness(es). 
  11. After the Town of Lincoln Representative has called all of their witnesses, the Appellant may make an opening submission and call their witnesses who may be the Appellant themselves and/or other witnesses. Again, once called, a witness is seated at the witness table and affirmed. 
  12. At the conclusion of the testimony of each of the Appellant’s witness(es), the Town of Lincoln Representative and then the Committee may ask their own questions of the witness(es). 
  13. The Appellant and then the Town of Lincoln Representative will make final submissions. The final submissions should include what each party is requesting of the Committee with respect to confirming, modifying or rescinding the Order and/or extending the time for complying with Order. 
  14. The Committee may retire to deliberate in the absence of the public, the Town of Lincoln Representative and the Appellant. The Secretary Treasurer will retire with the Committee to record its decision

The Decision 

  • The Committee renders its decision on the matter in the presence of the public, the Town of Lincoln Representative and/or designate, and the Appellant. If the Committee determines that additional information is required to render a decision, it may adjourn the matter to a future meeting date. 
  • In its decision, the Committee may confirm, modify or quash the Order and/or extend the time for complying with Order. 
  • A copy of the decision including the reasons for the decision of the Committee will be sent to the Appellant by Registered Mail.

Committee Agenda 

  • An Agenda is available to the public at the hearing or online on the Friday of the week prior to the Hearing.

Legal Counsel 

The Appellant may choose to be represented by a lawyer or an agent (who, in accordance with the Law Society Act and its regulations, may provide representation) or may be self-represented.