neighbour toronto

Woman tries to make nice with neighbour who reported her to Toronto inspectors

Who doesn't love to be lulled to sleep, or woken up in the morning, to the sweet sounds of construction?

That's a rhetorical question. Of course you don't. But unless you are living in the countryside or are in a coma, construction is just an annoying part of daily life we all have to deal with. 

Especially when it comes to our neighbours, construction can get even more cumbersome and irritating to people nearby and become an immediate cause for complaint. 

Megan Edgar recently became one of those people.

After a few weeks of ongoing deck renovations in her backyard, Edgar was notified by city officials that her neighbours called to complain about the construction.

However, instead of biting back, she recognized a special opportunity in her position and decided to put the drama at rest. 

In a Facebook post, Edgar acknowledged the complaints arising from the construction, assuring everything has been approved by the city, and directly addressed the neighbours who complained and did not approach her directly about their frustrations. 

"I now realize you had questions and/or frustrations and didn't feel you could approach us directly. I'm sorry for that and I'd like to take the first step in changing that. Let's build a more neighbourly relationship - I welcome you to shoot me a message, I would be more than happy to have you check over our permits and plans," she wrote.  

"And once the deck is finished, would love to have you by for a drink!" 

Edgar's initial reaction was frustration, particularly after having gone through all the obstacles to secure proper city approvals for the construction, but realized that her frustration was a waste of energy.

Posting to a Facebook group was a way she thought of opening a dialogue with the neighbours who complained, regaining a sense of community. 

"One of the main reasons my husband and I moved to the area was the sense of community and a neighbourhood feeling in a big city. And I saw this as an opportunity to contribute to the sense of community we love so much," she explained. 

Edgar's Facebook post has gotten a lot of positive feedback, people showing respect for her polite and understanding neighbourly conduct. 

Here's the full text of what Edgar wrote:

Hi Neighbours! Or, more specifically, our neighbours on Hastings Ave who called the city to complain about our deck construction.

Rest assured, the bureaucracy is working - the city sent out two inspectors (waking up our newborn as a bonus!) … and everything is exactly to plan that we had submitted and was approved by the city.

Once I got over my initial frustration of what I saw as a waste of city resources and taxpayer money (and got the baby back to sleep!) I realized there’s an opportunity in everything…

So, neighbour, I now realize you had questions and / or frustrations and didn’t feel you could approach us directly.

I'm sorry for that and I’d like to take the first step in changing that. Let’s build a more neighbourly relationship - I welcome you to shoot me a message, I would be more than happy to have you over to check out our permits and plans.

And once the deck is finished, would love to have you by for a drink!

Lead photo by

Leslieville BIA


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