Tourist houses disrupt Stoneham-at-Tewkesbury

A Stoneham-at-Tewkesbury resident has been irked by the construction of two chalets offering several rental rooms, but the municipality is still under the microscope of authorities for managing its building permits.

Nancy Roy bought a residence in Chemin Blanc in 2011.

“We sold the area as a place with alpine-style chalets in the mountains. The last straw was when our second neighbor (33, Chemin Blanc) built a 12-bedroom chalet with 12 bathrooms. It didn't make any sense. If 35 people come with six-car parking, you know it's coming, ” she complained.

Nancy Roy wants her two neighbors to respect the conditions of their building permits.

Photo courtesy of NANCY ROY

According to the rental ad, the building, built shortly after him, can sleep 34 people.

Recently, another chalet was built next to her house at No. 35.

Left, 33, Chemin Blanc, right, 35.

Photo by DIDIER DEBUSSCHERE

“The owner was allowed to build a four-bedroom chalet, but he made it seven, however, the city regulations are clear. For a tourist house, you must have one parking space per room,” said M.^me Roy.

The Journal Viewed rental ad for this chalet that can accommodate 26 people. It lists four bedrooms, but there are also three rooms with a total of four double beds and two single beds.

Rental ad for 35 Chemin Blanc, which originally received planning permission for four bedrooms. There we see three rooms not identified as bedrooms, but with beds. Also, the number of parking spaces should be four not eight.

Screenshot taken from Les Chalets Alpins website

“These chalets are rented for parties and weddings. It's like reception rooms,” says M.^me Roy.

The rules have changed

Mayor Sebastien Couture said during the issuance of the construction permit for Ms.^me Roy in 2009, there is no criteria for use as a tourist house.

“It wasn't a problem for us at the time, but it became a problem later. Transition [en maison de tourisme] And rents put pressure on residential neighborhoods. The sector is now classified as recreational tourism, with tourist houses authorized there. It was initially really residential, but quickly it transformed into a more or less suitable place for living,” he admits.

A blur

33, in the case of Chemin Blanc, a permit was issued under the new regulations, but for six rooms and not 12.

“There is a legal void on the definition of room. For example, if there is no door, is it a bedroom? From our point of view, a sleeping space is a bedroom,” argued the mayor.

Mayor of Stoneham-at-Tewkesbury, Sebastien Couture.

Photo by STEVENS LEBLANC

He said the file is currently in the hands of the Corporation de l'Industrie Tourisme du Québec (CITQ), which manages the registration of tourist accommodation establishments.

For 35, Chemin Blanc, which looks like it has four bedrooms but feels like seven, says, “We don't turn a blind eye. Lawyers are there. Implementing the rules is not easy. It's like we're righting the wrongs of the past,” concludes Sebastien Couture.

CMQ under the eye

• The Quebec Municipal Commission (CMQ) produced a 2020 report on the management of building permits in Stoneham-et-Tewkesbury.
• The report cited several shortcomings, including the lack of a monitoring strategy to detect unauthorized works.
• In its follow-up in March 2024, CMQ assessed that the city failed to establish performance targets and showed insufficient progress on two other points.
• CMQ will do another follow-up in March 2025
• Mayor Couture noted that many changes have been made in the administration over the past year and that CMQ's requests are going to be exceeded.