Montague Township council grants temporary reprieve for unpermitted building
MONTAGUE — A Montague home built without permits will be allowed to stand until next September.
Montague Township council voted unanimously on Oct. 7 to allow a home built without permits on a rural property near Smiths Falls to remain standing for one year as a storage-only structure.
Property owner Ben Stoddard appeared before council to explain how the 24-by-24-foot building was constructed without the required approvals. He said financial pressures pushed him to start the project last year after his business began to decline.
Stoddard told council he had built “a small room” last year without permits and said he regretted the decision. He described the structure as sound but too close to the road allowance, and asked for more time to remove it safely.
He said his family had invested about $20,000 of personal savings into the structure as a temporary solution while they figured out their next steps.
Coun. Gerald Crabtree asked why he built it without required permits.
“My business was slowing down, I was paying rent on a place, paying for my storefront, and a mortgage on the land,” Stoddard said. “At the time, it was kind of fight-or-flight. I just needed to get something up.”
Stoddard said the 30-day demolition deadline originally imposed by the township was unrealistic. He told council the building had been finished with cabinetry, tiles and electrical service, and that tearing it down within a month would have required “taking a dozer to it.”
He said the interior has now been stripped and utilities disconnected, and that no one is living there.
“It’s cold and empty except for a lazy boy I left to sit in,” he said. “I just need time to dismantle it safely.”
Township staff first became aware of the building in April 2025 following a public complaint. An Order to Comply was issued under Ontario’s Building Code Act, 1992, requiring demolition or proper permits. The original deadline for compliance was Sept. 29, later extended to Oct. 31, 2025.
Allison Vereyken, Montague’s treasurer and deputy clerk, said staff had worked with the owners for months and confirmed the building was no longer being used as a dwelling. She recommended allowing it to remain for one year, as storage only, to give Stoddard time to dismantle it and store the materials safely.
Montague Township council adopted staff’s recommendation to reduce the standard $5,000 penalty for building without a permit to $1,000, citing the owners’ cooperation and the staff time already spent on the file.
“We want to ensure that no one is living in it,” Vereyken said. The township’s concern relates to potential legal exposure if an unapproved structure were occupied and a safety issue occurred.
Deputy Reeve Jeffery Carroll, who chaired the meeting, supported the approach as a fair balance between compassion and accountability.
Crabtree said the decision represented good faith on the township’s part while reinforcing that building permits must still be obtained.
Montague Township council unanimously agreed to permit the structure to remain as storage for one year from the September 2025 demolition-permit date, ending September 2026. The building must remain unoccupied and be dismantled or removed by the deadline under the existing permit.
Vereyken said the Stoddards agreed to the terms during the meeting.
Montague Township has issued eight enforcement actions related to unpermitted dwellings since 2023, including four Orders to Comply in 2025, three in 2024 and one in 2023, Vereyken said. She added that the township’s policy is to work with residents before issuing formal orders whenever possible but to act when compliance stalls or health and safety concerns arise.
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For more details on township decisions, see the Montague Township council meeting agendas and minutes.
