It’s a tale of the neighbour from hell taken to the extreme.
A Sault Ste. Marie couple plagued by dysfunctional behaviour at a neighbouring property for at least five years has been awarded more than half a million dollars in damages as the result of a court decision handed down earlier this month.
Ontario Superior Court Justice Annalisa Rasaiah was satisfied with evidence provided by Nick Delavalle and his common-law partner to demonstrate their next-door neighbour, along with numerous tenants, squatters and guests, routinely engaged in “illegal, illicit, disruptive, interfering and egregious conduct,” — including drug use, assaults, gunshots, animal feces and incessant noise being made by people partying and barking dogs during all hours of the day and night — at an infamous, garbage-strewn property in the P-Patch neighbourhood.
The 29-page written decision was released Sept 18.
“I know the judge awarded a lot of money and everything, but people don’t realize this is not about any money,” said Delavalle during an interview with SooToday this week. “This was about getting peace and quiet, and getting our neighbourhood back.”
It’s fair to say the property, located at 29 Pentagon Boulevard, is well known to authorities: members of Sault Ste. Marie Police Service have attended the property and filed occurrence summary reports on a total of 119 occasions between May 18, 2019 and July 9, 2023, court records show.
Delavalle and his partner initially filed a statement of claim against property owner Marty Acciavatti in 2022, seeking $700,000 in damages from their neighbour for “multiple private nuisances, trespasses, mental distress, out-of-pocket expenses,” and other punitive damages.
The couple also sought a court injunction in an effort to put a stop to the alleged drug-fuelled chaos happening in and around the property, which has been described in the claim as having a city-wide reputation for operating as a free-for-all “haven for illegal and illicit activity.”
The statement of claim lays out a nightmarish predicament: the couple hasn’t been able to open any windows in their home because of ongoing noise and strong odours, and have had to repeatedly clean up debris and dog feces on their property due to trespassers coming and going from next door.
At one point, Delavalle and his partner relocated their bedroom to the basement after their home was struck by bullets, courtesy of a sawed-off .22 calibre rifle that was fired off by one of Acciavatti’s guests from inside of his garage on the morning of June 11, 2022. One person was arrested and charged by police following the incident.
Delavalle recalls tending to his front yard when the gunshots rang out. His partner was sitting in the living room at the time. “Where my wife was sitting, those rounds hit right there — but the chimney was in the way,” he said.
Those gunshots turned out to be the couple’s breaking point.
After years of countless interactions with police, city officials and councillors that “fell on deaf ears,” Delavalle decided to take action: He came across the tort of private nusiance after doing some research and called up nearly every law firm in the Sault, but none would take on his case. Finally, he connected with Paul Paciocco with Skeggs Paciocco Lawyers LLP.
“Paul and his firm took this case on and stuck with us for over two years on this matter — and in the end, they were outstanding in every way,” said Dellavalle. “They got this done for us.”
An uncontested trial was scheduled for earlier this year in Ontario Superior Court after Acciavatti was noted in default for failing to respond to the claim. The defendant appeared for a hearing in March in order to participate, but his request was denied in court. A message left for Acciavatti by SooToday earlier this week through social media has not been returned.
Justice Rasaiah subsequently awarded the plaintiffs $360,000 in general damages, $100,000 in punitive damages, $40,000 for damages related to repeated trespassing on their property and $20,000 for mental distress. Acciavatti was also ordered to pay $50,000 in court costs within 30 days of the court decision being issued.
Acciavatti has also been ordered to fence in his backyard, leash all animals and clean up his garbage and debris-ridden property. The Sheriff in Sault Ste. Marie has been directed by the court to enforce the order, while Sault Ste. Marie Police Service has been authorized to assist the Sheriff in the enforcement of the court order and arrest anyone who contravenes it.
In a joint statement issued to SooToday, lawyers for Skeggs Paciocco Lawyers LLP say they felt compelled to take on the case for Dellavalle and his partner after recognizing an opportunity to potentially help families in the P-Patch and to "better the community at large."
“We are hopeful the powers set out in the judgment will result in a resolution of the issues being experienced by the Plaintiffs and other innocent families living in the P-Patch,” they said. “This has been a tremendously long and tiring road for our clients. As their lawyers, we remain committed to assisting and supporting them in achieving their ultimate goal of peace and security in their home and neighbourhood.”
Dellavalle’s legal counsel added that the judgment also creates a legal precedent by awarding what they believe to be the highest amount for damages for private nuisance in Canada.
“This decision will provide guidance to lawyers and claimants who bring future nuisance claims in Canadian courts,” they said. “We hope this precedent will assist other individuals in similar situations, while also primarily serving to deter people from engaging in the type of disruptive conduct experienced by our clients.”
Acciavatti was directed to post the court order somewhere visible on his property, but that hasn’t happened as of Wednesday. The property has yet to be cleaned up, says Delavalle, and there are still people making noise at all hours.
Dellavalle says he’s still in conversation with his lawyer about the enforcement of the court order. “For now, it’s still calling police and reporting what the problem is,” he said. “I really hope they take it more seriously than they have been in the past, because we’re still open to go back to the courts about enforcement. We’ll see what happens out of all of that, and I’m hoping for the best.”
Delavalle gives credit to the Integrated Municipal Enforcement Team (IMET) — a partnership between Sault Police, Sault Fire Services, City of Sault Ste. Marie building and by-law and other local enforcement agencies — for attending the address approximately two to three times per year in an effort to enforce the cleanup and maintenance of the problem property.
But other than that, he says the city has been largely ineffective in cracking down on the multitude of ongoing issues at 29 Pentagon Blvd over the past five years, despite all of the costly municipal resources that have been deployed to date. “Why are you taxing us if you can’t even enforce bylaws?” he said.
Delavalle says there is a pack of more than 10 dogs roaming around the neighbourhood at large — he believes many of them are pitbulls — resulting in dog attacks and people being chased down in the P-Patch.
He also alleges that the people coming in and out of that house are "stealing from everybody in the neighbourhood" through repeated break-ins to homes and garages.
Delavalle can’t help but feel as though the various enforcement measures ultimately favour the cavalcade of unseemly tenants at 29 Pentagon Blvd. from doing whatever they want in and around the garbage-infested property.
He hopes the neighbourhood he's lived in for well over two decades will benefit from the court decision down the road. Delavalle says he's been flooded with congratulatory messages from neighbours, expressing their gratitude, after news of the court decision broke earlier this week.
“We’re the victims — not the people in that house,” he said. “Families have been victimized, children have been traumatized.”
