2:40pm Tuesday 9th March 2010
By Alison Cridland
A couple who repeatedly refused to pull down an illegal extension have been hit with another heavy fine.
Ignacy Lechowicz, 73, and his wife, Krystana, 56, are in a long-running dispute with Brighton and Hove City Council over the work.
The council has repeatedly taken the couple to court to try to get them to demolish the “eyesore” extension at their bungalow in Goldstone Way, Hove.
But so far they have refused to demolish the work, which they started in 2005, despite countless court appearances and Mrs Lechowicz spending time in jail.
At the latest court hearing the couple were both fined £7,500 by Brighton magistrates and both ordered to pay £1,450 costs for failing to comply with an enforcement notice ordering them to remove the work in 2007.
They denied failing to comply with the notice but did not appear in court for their trial and the case was proved in their absence.
Len Batten, prosecuting for the council, said: "Planning applications have been submitted and refused and on appeal the refusal has been upheld. This has not resulted in the unauthorised structure being removed."
Council officer Evelyn Baxter described the extension as an "eyesore" and told the court it appeared that brick patterned wallpaper had been used on outside walls as well as bathroom tiles on outside pillars.
The Polish couple, who have a teenage daughter, claim they needed to install the balcony and car port as it improved disabled access to their detached home. The works were also meant to be the base of a conservatory, which was never completed.
They were prosecuted twice for failing to provide the council with information about who owned the property and in 2008 Mrs Lechowicz, who receives incapacity benefit, served 65 days in prison in lieu of paying more than £5,000 in fines and costs.
Later that year they were together fined £10,000 and ordered to pay £1,000 for failing to comply with the notice.
The court was told the couple have finally been granted planning permission in January after submitting plans for a new fully-glazed porch and new steps to give disability access, which meets building regulations, but so far no work has started.
The council will now consider what action to take to ensure the couple comply with the order. The local authority could carry out the demolition work themselves and then place a charge on the property to recover the costs.
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