Christopher Whyms-Stone, president of the Jamaican Institute of Architects. - File

CHRISTOPHER WHYMS-STONE, president of the Jamaica Institute of Architects (JIA), is calling on the Department of Local Government and the various parish councils across the country to stop approving plans drawn by unregistered draughtsmen.

The practice, he argued, is not only illegal, as it is in breach of the 1987 Architects Registration Act, but it also compromises and undermines the quality of the buildings and infrastructural development of the country.

But Robert Montague, state minister with responsibility for local government, is adamant that the current approval procedure carried out by the parish councils is within the ambit of the law, as there is nowhere in the act where it says parish councils are only allowed to take drawings from registered architects.

The act, which came into effect October 2005, states that no individual should carry out the practice of architecture in Jamaica unless he or she is a registered architect.

There are some 180 architects registered in Jamaica.

Whyms-Stone contends that for years, parish councils have been accepting drawings from "anybody", including unregistered untrained individuals who have no training or authority to design buildings.

experience vs qualification

"Nine out of 10 of them, maybe, have years of experience working in an architect's office drafting, or an A' level or O' level in technical drawing, but TD doesn't qualify someone to be an architect," he disclosed.

Whyms-Stone, who is a partner in a Kingston-based firm of architects, says apart from the practice being illegal, it also compromises quality, and property owners are often left with substandard buildings.

He further said the problem had become so widespread that the parish councils were passing plans with no names on them.

"There is no record of who designed it, so there is no accountability. If something goes wrong, there's nobody to call. Why do the parish councils want to take that liability when it's not theirs to take?" he questions.

The JIA head also argues that the parish councils have become extremely lax, particularly when it comes to monitoring the construction phase of a property after the approval.

"The parish councils are supposed to inspect while the houses are being built. never happens!" he says. "The monitoring is poor. look at the country. Ninety per cent of people don't submit for approval, they do as they please," he adds.

grossly misinformed

However, Montague is unwavering and argues that Whyms-Stone is grossly misinformed.

He says in considering and processing applications for building approvals, parish councils are not guided by the provisions of the Architects Registration Act, but rather, by the provisions of the Parish Councils Building Act and the Parish Building Act Regulations.

Montague said Whyms-Stone argument was erroneous. "The law clearly says that to be an architect, you must be registered with the architects registration board - full stop!" he said.

He continued: "The Parish Council Act and the Town and Planning Act authorise the parish councils to accept drawings from architects and draughtsmen, and the parish councils are proceeding accordingly.

"And until the law is changed, the parish councils will abide by the law and will continue to open up to the building public the services of draughtsmen and architects," he stated.

According to the minister, the matter was recently raised in a consultation and it was referred to the attorney general, which ruled that the parish councils were working within the provisions of the law.

properties construction

Montague also argues that the parish councils have been doing an exceptional job in monitoring the construction of properties.

"The courts are inundated with stop orders and enforcement orders from the parish councils," he says. "As a matter of fact, it has got to the point where we have just completed consultations with the Ministry of Justice to establish municipal courts so that these matters can be moved through the court system faster, instead of clogging up the RM schedule."

Montague has also raised concerns about what he says has been the JIA's attempt to reduce the earnings of the "small man."

"Ninety per cent of the applications into the parish councils are for extensions - the addition of a bathroom, bedroom or kitchen. The larger projects, the building of a plaza or a housing scheme ... the developers automatically go to an architect," he disclosed.

"Why is it that they would want to take away from a fellow Jamaican, in these harsh economic times, a little income?" he asks.

However, the JIA president says architects are willing to accept a 750-square-foot compromise, where draughtsmen are allowed to design buildings up to that size.

Minister of State in the Office of the Prime Minister with responsibility for Local Government, Mr Robert 'Bobby' Montague.

athaliah.reynolds@gleanerjm.com