Have you ever had a disagreement with a neighbour about a fence, common ditch, drainage ditch or clearance?

Ville de Notre-Dame-de-l’Île-Perrot encourages you to talk to your neighbour and try to resolve the conflict amongst yourselves.

If no agreement is possible, you can ask the municipal arbitrator to intervene.

The arbitrator’s role

The arbitrator, formerly called an agrarian inspector, serves as a conciliator between the parties in the dispute. If no agreement is possible between them, the arbitrator intervenes, and either decides that no work is necessary or that the work must go ahead. If one of the parties fails to do the work as ordered, the work may have to be done by NDIP, at the expense of the delinquent party. The arbitrator is also responsible for investigation and inspection.

Who can request the arbitrator to intervene?

The owner of land within Notre-Dame-de-l’Île-Perrot:

• situated in an agricultural zone;
• situated outside an agricultural zone, but where agricultural or forest activity takes place; or
• adjacent to one of the above two types of land.

Requesting the arbitrator to intervene

To request the arbitrator to intervene, residents must fill out the proper form and submit it at one of the municipal service centres.

• Download the format in PDF format

Steps involved in requesting the arbitrator’s intervention

 

Objection

If a party is dissatisfied with the arbitrator’s decision, it may file an objection with the Court of Quebec to try to get the order reversed. The decision by the Court of Quebec is not subject to appeal.

Under the Civil Code of Quebec

Fences and common ditches

Landowners may fence their land at their own expense with walls, ditches, hedges or any other kind of fence. They may also require their neighbour to make half of or share the cost of making a fence which is suited to the situation and use made of the premises, on the dividing line to divide their land from their neighbour’s.

Clearances

Owners of land used for agricultural purposes may compel their neighbour to fell the trees along and not over five metres from the dividing line, if they are seriously damaging to their operation, except trees in an orchard or sugar bush and trees preserved to embellish the property.

Under the Municipal Powers Act

Drainage ditches

Drainage ditches are used solely for drainage or irrigation. They do not result from the improvement, maintenance or diversion of a waterway or body of water whose watershed has an area of less than 100 hectares.

For more information

For additional information about the steps involved in the arbitrator’s intervention, please contact the Division de la planification du territoire urbain, Module de l’urbanisme et du développement durable:

Phone: 819-243-2345, extension  7331
E-mail: info@gatineau.ca