The District of West Vancouver and a pair of residents are headed for court over alleged illegal renovation work that may be threatening the structural integrity of a townhouse complex at West Royal Towers.

In a court petition filed in October, Philip and Raven Garrow accuse the district of unlawfully putting a stop-work order on their townhouse renovation at 348 Taylor Way.

The district, however, says the work would never have been granted a permit.

According to court documents, the Garrows received a building permit in April 2020. But, less than two weeks later, the strata complained the Garrows were drilling into the building’s concrete slab without permission and district staff slapped a stop-work order on the site.

In their petition filed in October, the Garrows admit they drilled three holes into the concrete slab – but they say the holes were included in the plans approved by the district before getting their building permit.

The application included a letter from the strata manager, approving the renovations, but the letter specified that any modification of the concrete slab is “strictly prohibited.”

“The structure of concrete floors is post-tensioned and any damage to the cables embedded in the concrete floors could cause catastrophic damages to the structural integrity of the building,” the letter stated.

A structural engineer hired by the strata investigated and found that, in addition to several steel rebars, three post-tensioned cables had been cut “in a manner that, while not resulting in an immediate safety concern, has compromised the integrity of the structure,” the court documents state.

Keep reading in the North Shore News