righter101 said:
Turning a blind eye is dangerous, and in fact, constitutes nonfeasance.You would be wise to serve notice and document the violation. If the mechanisms in your jurisdiction do not aggressively pursue violations, so be it.
I would still be working off the first week of my career. Today was a good example. I went out on a complaint of a converted garage. The garage has been converted so I will deal with that. I also noticed an illegal carport, patio cover, window change-out and new water heater. The carport was built strong, as was the patio cover. The carport couldn't be where it was because of the side yard setback. The windows met egress except for non-operable burglar bars. The water heater had no issues other than no permit.
The only reason that I was there was that a neighbor complained about a converted garage. The conversion must be 20 years old so the neighbor's complaint has more to do with the occupant than the conversion. Along with removing the garage conversion, the burglar bars will come off, and that's it. I am not going to turn this man's world upside down unless there are specific complaints. If there are more complaints, I may visit the complainants property and see how he is doing. Perhaps I can impart a few tips on anger management.
I would bet that there are more than a half million converted garages in this area. I could stand on most any street corner and cite every property within sight. Almost every time I am on a property, I can spot a bootleg. Every time I am on a roof I can spot bootlegs and I let most of them go unless there is active construction. I could write them all and be out of a job. We just don't operate that way.
We respond to complaints and everything else is left up to the discretion of the inspector. I go after anything that I think is dangerous and that is
company policy.
It is rare that I require people to get permits for such things as room additions, sheds, patio covers etc. that were built years ago. If the structure has stood the test of time, who am I to harsh their gig. It is not so rare that I require demolition because there is a serious life/safety violation created by a really sad attempt at construction.
People already have an entrenched dislike for the Building Dept. and in many cases that contempt is well-founded. If we go out there like storm troopers there will be more bootleg than there is now.