The builder who scaled down a contentious 27-bedroom development in Old Ottawa South earlier this week has unfinished business with neighbours of another intensification project in Centretown.

Years before Jordan Tannis began work at 177 Hopewell Ave., he converted 186 James St. from a tri-plex to a 10-unit building. At the time, a group called Friends of James and Bay sprung up to oppose his effort to provide fewer parking spaces than would normally be required in such a development.

Tannis won that fight at City Hall, but he lost another one in court when the owners of three townhouses next door successfully sued him for chopping down three mature trees without their permission.

Two years after the judgment, however, those homeowners are still waiting to be paid approximately $7,000 and have sent collection agents in pursuit of Tannis. So far, they say they haven't seen a dime.

Three trees seen here between the house at right and the townhouses at left were cut down during the redevelopment of 186 James Street. A judge ordered builder Jordan Tannis to compensate three of the townhouse owners but they say they've been unable to collect. (Google Street View)

Trees were on property line

The three maple trees were on the property line between 186 James St. and the group of townhouses on the corner of James Street and Bay Street.

"When they were in leaf, it made for a lovely, leafy courtyard back there," said Catherine Black, who's lived in her townhouse for 26 years.

Black was away from home for a few days in August 2014 when the trees came down without warning, she said.

"I was just horrified. Devastated," Black said. "And astounded, that this could happen without any regard to private property, the law. And heartsick."

After the trees were cut down, Black and her neighbours Joseph Paravan and Adeline Jeejeebhoy planted three saplings to replace them. They also put up a fence for privacy, they say, and to protect their property from a builder in whom they'd lost trust.

Trees on the property line between 186 James Street, right, and the townhouses next door were cut down during a redevelopment. (Hilary Paravan)

Developer promised to trim trees only, neighbours say

One of the trees that was cut down used to shade Joseph Paravan's elevated patio.

"We felt that losing these trees was not only detrimental to our own satisfaction of our property, but also could potentially decrease our property values," he said.

Neighbours began keeping a close eye on the new development as soon as signs went up in the neighbourhood, Paravan said, but he began to fear for the trees when he learned Tannis had hired an arborist. The two had an exchange by text, screen captures of which Paravan has submitted in court.

"Just gonna trim the trees that hang onto my side of the lot. Won't remove anything," said one text that appears to be from Tannis to Paravan.

A few months later, a crew under the direction of Tannis removed the trees, according to documents filed in court.

Catherine Black, right, has a binder full of documents for the lawsuit she filed with neighbours Joseph Paravan, centre, and Adeline Jeejeebhoy, left. They sought compensation after the developer of the land next door cut down three trees on the property line without permission. (Jean Delisle)

Refusal to compensate drove neighbours to small claims court

When Tannis refused to compensate him for the loss of the trees, Paravan got together with his neighbours to pursue the matter in small claims court.

In November 2015 a judge awarded them approximately $2,200 each plus an additional $450 in costs. The neighbours told the court the cost of the replacement saplings and the fence they installed was approximately $7,600.

Last September, when Tannis still had not paid them, the neighbours hired a collection agency. That prompted Tannis to file a motion in court, in which he argued that before the collection notice, he'd never heard of the claim against him and that it was baseless.

"I would like a chance to defend myself," Tannis wrote.

The neighbours filed new paperwork to prove Tannis had been informed of the lawsuit and prepared for a hearing on October 27, but according to court documents, Tannis did not appear and did not send a representative.

Tannis declined CBC's request for an interview.

Joseph Paravan organized his neighbours to file a lawsuit against builder Jordan Tannis, who redeveloped the property to the right of the fence seen here. Paravan and his neighbours erected the fence, and planted the three saplings visible next to it, to replace mature trees on the property line that were chopped down without permission. (Jean Delisle)

'It puts a sour taste in your mouth'

In November, Black obtained a writ of seizure and sale of land. The writ is intended to make it difficult for Tannis to sell or mortgage property until the debt to Black and her neighbours is paid, but that's no guarantee he'll pay anytime soon.

At this point, Paravan said the fight is less about the money than about deterring Tannis from running roughshod over neighbours.

Paravan and his family have kept their townhouse as a rental property but have moved themselves to a new neighbourhood, a decision Paravan said was driven in part by their experience as Tannis's next door neighbours.

"It was definitely a stressful situation and it still is," Paravan said. "It's hard not to drive by and think about all the things that went wrong throughout the development. It puts a sour taste in your mouth."