The Tee Street home of a Bermuda Housing Corporation property officer has drawn the ire of the Planning department after extensive renovations which were refused Planning approval went ahead anyway.

The three-storey, four-bedroom home belonging to BHC officer Terrence Smith has been under work since the summer of 2000.

Two separate applications were submitted to Planning for renovations to the property since Mr. Smith and his wife purchased it that year.

While the first application was granted approval by the Development Applications Board (DAB) in September 2000, a second application to add another 5,899 square feet to the home through a new deck, enlarged bedroom, extended veranda and storage area and new roof over the master bedroom terrace was rejected in August of last year.

But the renovations went ahead in the defiance of the ruling, Planning officers discovered on a site visit last month.

Mr. Smith must now successfully apply for retroactive permission for the renovations or face an enforcement order to have them removed and even possible prosecution.

“It has come to my attention that development exists on this site that is outside the approval granted September 14, 2000,” wrote Planning officer Nicky Gurret in a March 21 letter to Mr. Smith.

“Your application for revisions... was refused August 29, 2001. In the letter the word “refused” was underlined and in a bold type.

“Notwithstanding the board's decision, after having visited the site recently, it appears that all those works refused have been carried out,” the letter continued.

In addition to undertaking the work refused in the second application, a stone wall around the property was also raised without Planning clearance. Mr. Smith was informed he needed to contact the department.

“If we do not receive a written response by April 4 outlining your course of action, this Department will have no other recourse than to commence legal action,” Ms Gurret wrote.

It is understood that a “stop work order” was not placed on the property because the prohibited renovations were already complete.

The letter also stated that the Planning department would not support the retroactive application unless the original reasons permission was refused are addressed and a planned course of action submitted. According to the Planning file, the second application for revisions was refused after Mr. Smith was unable to prove his site had legal access over Oleander Square.

Planning officers attempted to contact Mr. Smith about this glitch in his application several times before the file was presented to the DAB but received no reply and the DAB referred specifically to the problem in its decision to refuse the application.

The Royal Gazette understands that, since the letter from Planning was sent, a meeting took place between Mr. Smith's wife and Planning officers. Planning officers were told the property's agents, Entasis Architecture, will be submitting revised plans for retroactive approval soon. The board can then elect to approve the changes retroactively or recommend enforcement action.

Although Enforcement Officer Sheldon Fox agreed the complete disregard of the DAB's ruling is “a serious offence”, he said discussions would have to take place before any enforcement decision would be made. The home is nestled into a 95,745 square foot lot in Devonshire and its grounds include a pool, pool house, two-storey garage and sauna.

The renovations for the property which received Planning approval in September 2000 extended the home by over 4,000 square feet. A letter to Planning from the property's agents, Entasis Architecture outlining the additions at the time states: “At the ground floor a new foyer, bathroom and laundry is proposed on the eastern elevation.

“A new portico at the main entrance, a new laundry and veranda, a new family room, washroom and terrace are proposed at the main floor.

“Finally, at the upper floor level, a third bedroom, a master bathroom and closet is proposed as an infill over the existing building footprint which extends to the third storey elevation.”

The plans submitted with the proposal also called for two fish ponds, two sunrooms, a flagstone walkway, a two-storey, three-car garage, a small office and a wet bar at pool level.

The Tee Street home came to media attention last month when a contractor told The Royal Gazette he was told his company was no longer welcome on BHC jobs after he tried to bill for work the company had done on the home. Contractor Kevin Pilgrim of SOHO Applications said he was told the directive had come from BHC general manager Raymonde Dill and Mr. Smith.

The Royal Gazette also learned that business cards for Mr. Smith's freelance architectural design services business list the BHC office phone as its contact number.

Attempts to contact Mr. Smith for comment yesterday were unsuccessful.