A father-of-four who demolished his half of a semi-detached house insists he isn't the bad guy. Chris Rhodes, 47, tore down his side of the semi-detached property in Pudsey, Leeds, leaving neighbour Shivarna Mitra, 44, living next to a mound of rubble in a home she claims is plagued with damp and mould and is now impossible to sell.
Rhodes stands by actions
However, Mr Rhodes, who has since departed the UK, has stood by his actions and pointed the finger at both Ms Mitra and Leeds City Council for making the situation worse. Speaking to MailOnline, he said: "There were very unfortunate circumstances that cost my wife and I a significant amount of money and stress also."
He added that those circumstances "created a bad situation of which I tried to work with all parties concerned at every point to resolve", but said he could not say the same about his former neighbour, reports Leeds Live.
Neighbour's ordeal
Ms Mitra, who resides at the property with her young son and elderly mother, has previously described the past four years as a "nightmare". She purchased her three-bedroom home in May 2021 for £217,000 after years of saving, then spent approximately £80,000 on refurbishments, including a £35,000 garden and a new kitchen.
She has said gaps left in her walls and roof allow rain, rats, squirrels and wasps to enter, with rats gnawing through cables and leaving the house requiring a complete rewire. She also disclosed she had been through cancer and major surgery during the dispute, saying: "Instead of recovering, I'm fighting battles from my hospital bed on emails."
Planning and demolition
Mr Rhodes, a self-employed carpenter, purchased the adjacent property in July 2022 for £280,000. He obtained planning permission for two extensions that summer and construction began in October 2022.
Ms Mitra alleges he used the planning approvals as a smokescreen to demolish the property, which he refutes. She alerted the council in January 2023, asserting the work violated planning consent.
Mr Rhodes maintains a storm rendered the gable wall unsafe and that, in accordance with Health and Safety Executive guidance, he removed it alongside the front wall. He told MailOnline: "I had a discussion with the HSE and it was agreed [that pulling the wall down] was necessary and the correct course of action to avoid any risk or danger to others and their properties."
Council response and aftermath
The council served a stop notice in May 2023, which he states he fully complied with. He said a planning enforcement officer informed him he ought to have applied for demolition, adding: "This goes against what the Health and Safety Executive said and I had an obligation, both legally and morally to immediately make things safe."
Mr Rhodes subsequently required permission for an entirely new home. He alleges the council neglected him for months following his application, stating: "I received zero response from my many answer machine messages and emails."
That application was rejected, but a second submission for a five-bedroom property was granted approval in May 2024. The house was never constructed. Mr Rhodes sold the plot with planning permission earlier this year for £115,000, stating he did not want his family "exposed to all the nastiness".
He maintains Ms Mitra attempted to obstruct the rebuild at every opportunity and questioned why she would object to it if the vacant plot was such an issue. He also refutes Ms Mitra's allegation that he behaved aggressively towards her, telling MailOnline: "This did not happen and I was in no way, shape or form, aggressive with her."
He claimed she was abusive towards his builders and summoned the fire brigade over non-existent fires. Ms Mitra denies being abusive or aggressive.
Mr Rhodes also disputes that his builders caused damage to her property. He said: "We did not touch her roof as is shown in the videos and images. We left approximately two feet of our roof so as to protect the top of the wall from direct weather."
A Leeds City Council spokesperson said: "The building was subsequently taken down by the owner without the necessary council permissions being in place. The owner was advised by Leeds City Council to submit a Section 80 Demolition Notice but did not do so."
The council stated that Building Control officers subsequently found the adjacent property "remained structurally stable" and advised weatherproofing the exposed party wall. It added: "As these are privately owned properties, the council advised Ms Mitra to contact her house insurer and take legal advice. The council will continue to monitor the site and take any appropriate action as necessary."
An HSE spokesperson confirmed the regulator attended the site after the property had already been demolished and provided verbal guidance on scaffolding and site security, adding: "At the time of the HSE interactions there were no breaches of health and safety legislation that required formal enforcement."
Ms Mitra's insurer has brought a legal claim, which she says is still around two years from reaching court.
