A father-of-four who demolished half of his semi-detached home in Pudsey, Leeds, before moving abroad has been pictured as neighbours spoke of their sympathy for the woman left living next to a mound of debris.
Chris Rhodes tore down his portion of the property on Swinnow Road. His former neighbour, Shivarna Mitra, 44, said she has been left living next to the barren patch of land since it was pulled down, and that her home has become impossible to sell due to damp and mould.
Property owner defends demolition
Defending the move to MailOnline, Mr Rhodes said: "There were very unfortunate circumstances that cost my wife and I a significant amount of money and stress also." He claimed these "created a bad situation of which I tried to work with all parties concerned at every point to resolve".
Ms Mitra, who purchased her three-bedroom home in May 2021 for £217,000, says she has invested approximately £80,000 in refurbishments, including a £35,000 garden and a new kitchen. She now alleges rain has been able to get into her home due to gaps in her walls, as well as rain, rats, squirrels and wasps.
Planning and safety dispute
Mr Rhodes, a self-employed carpenter, purchased the property next door in July 2022 for £280,000. He had planning permission for two extensions granted that summer, with construction beginning in October 2022. Ms Mitra alleges he exploited the planning approvals to tear down the entire house, which he strongly denies. She alerted the council in January 2023, claiming the works violated planning consent.
A Leeds City Council spokesman confirmed the building was torn down without the necessary permissions in place, and that Mr Rhodes was told to submit a demolition notice but "did not do so". Mr Rhodes claims that in January 2023 he was not told to stop working by the council but rather was "in the middle of building work in line with granted planning permission". He said the gable wall between the homes "became unsafe and at great cost to ourselves we had to immediately make it safe".
He said: "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. We [the builder] immediately took the wall down to make it safe, and the front wall had to come down also."
Leeds Council handed him an official stop order in May 2023, which he says he "fully complied with". He added: "I had a meeting with the planning enforcement officer and he notified us that we should have submitted an application to demolish to the council. This goes against what the Health and Safety Executive said and I had an obligation, both legally and morally to immediately make things safe. I accepted that there would be planning ramifications at this point but the number one priority is safety."
After the house was demolished, Mr Rhodes said he was told he would need to put in an application for a new-build house because he had gone "beyond the percentage threshold for refurbishment". A second proposal for a five-bedroom property eventually gained approval in May 2024, but the property was never constructed. Mr Rhodes sold the plot with planning permission earlier this year for £115,000.
Neighbours and council respond
Design engineer Adam Humphreys, a neighbour who lives nearby, shared his sympathies with Ms Mitra. Speaking to LeedsLive, he said: "We only bought the house two years ago and it was like that. It must be horrible to have that on the side of your house. I feel bad for her." He added: "I don't know what's gone on between them but hopefully it gets fixed. Everyone has seen the story and no one wants that on the side of their house! Everyone just thinks it looks horrible."
A spokesperson for Leeds City Council stated: "The council is aware of the demolition of a property at this site following structural instability that arose during construction works. 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."
"Following the unauthorised demolition, officers from the council's Building Control team attended the site to assess the remaining structure and any potential impact on the adjoining semi-detached property. Their assessment concluded that the neighbouring property remained structurally stable and that no additional shoring was required."
"Officers also recommended measures to make the exposed party wall weatherproof and provided this advice to the owner. 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."
A HSE spokesperson noted: "HSE visited the site when the property had been demolished. HSE provided verbal advice in relation to scaffolding and site security. At the time of the HSE interactions there were no breaches of health and safety legislation that required formal enforcement."
