The New Taipei City Government on Monday fined a property developer NT$90,000 after it tore down a private house in Sanchong District (三重) on Sunday without the owner’s permission.
The city government said it would not allow the company to start work on a development project in the area before public safety could be ensured and did not rule out revoking the developer’s business license if the deadline for starting work expires.
The city also said that it would reject property projects submitted by the company for review and would consider putting the company on a blacklist, which would prohibit it from bidding on city government urban renewal projects.
Photo: Yu Cheng-lin, Taipei Times
The company launched a 150 ping (495.87m2) renovation project where 13 residential units stood, with the owners of 11 units agreeing to the renovation, while the other two rejected the plan as they were dissatisfied with the level of compensation offered for demolishing their buildings.
One of the two was the owner of the demolished building, surnamed Lin (林).
Lin said he was alerted by a telephone call from one of his neighbors that his home of 40 years had been torn down in a surprise raid by the construction company while he was out for lunch with his family.
Lin’s three-story house occupied an area of about 7 ping, with the first story made from concrete blocks and the second and third stories built from sheet metal.
Lin said that his father bought the building about 60 years ago after moving to the city from the south.
Lin, his wife and their three children lived in the building, he said.
“We only have ownership rights of the building, not the land,” Lin said.
However, the loss cannot possibly be estimated, he said, because there are many things that money cannot buy.
Lin said that he now has no choice but to accept the shelter arrangements provided by the city government.
According to the city government, as Lin did not register the house, it was an illegal structure.
However, the government said that while the development company applied for a construction license, it did not apply for a permit to start construction.
Only the government has the authority to enforce the demolition of illegal buildings, the city government said, adding that it fined the company for illegally tearing down the building and ordered it to stop the demolition work in accordance with the Building Act (建築法).
A lawyer said that according to the Criminal Code, the developer could face up to five years in jail for destroying, damaging, or rendering useless an object belonging to another person.
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