The unpleasant situation that’s brewed for weeks at Gould Place is coming to a head as the City of St. Albert says the house-turned-motel will be vacated by Friday, or the police are moving in.
The home in question, 3 Gould Place, has for several weeks been home to construction workers living in the residence as a boarding house. The neighbourhood is zoned R1, which means single families only.
Neighbours have been angrily trying to have the traffic and noise of a de facto motel next to their homes stopped to no avail. But after a meeting with St. Albert city manager Patrick Draper outside their homes last Thursday, it seems some progress is being made, said angry neighbour Shelley Robinson.
“It was interesting,” said Robinson Monday. “We definitely got some concrete answers as to when the timeline of this is going to end,” she said.
Robinson said Draper stated the owner of 3 Gould Place, Trevor Matheson, was given an order to have the premises conform to the zoning by this coming Friday. She said she was told the order gave Matheson two weeks to comply, which means it was given to him June 14.
“It can’t continue because it has to be ... a family plus two guests,” said Robinson, noting what she was told about how many people are allowed under the bylaw to dwell in an R1 residence.
Robinson said she and other neighbours in the close have multiple concerns about the boarding house, including traffic, parking, noise and the large number of strangers in the neighbourhood.
“All of this has drastically changed the way we live our lives here,” said Robinson.
So, the question now is ... what happens Friday?
“He wasn’t very clear about that,” said Robinson. “He said then they have the right to enter the home.”
The City of St. Albert, contacted Tuesday, said they had no new information regarding this matter.
A message was also left for Matheson Tuesday, but it was not returned by deadline.
Robinson said she is happy about the meeting with the city manager, but still angry about the confused nature of the incident.
“I was happy we got some answers,” she said.
“I was disappointed it took so long, that it took going to the media to get some answers.”
