Dearborn resident Muheeb Nabulsy is challenging the city in court, arguing there is no justification for him to remove the sliding glass door in his garage.

DEARBORN — This week, the city will begin inspecting garages as part of an ordinance passed earlier this year that outlawed residents from installing sliding glass doors and living in their garages.

At a city briefing on Tuesday, October 14, city officials said they had compiled a list of 55 homes that will be inspected based on findings from previous citations and complaints from neighbors.

Inspectors will determine whether garages meet the standards of the new ordinance. During the inspections, the city said it will be looking at the appearance of the garage, the structure and the usage within that structure. The city has composed a “check-list” for inspectors to run through as they visit the garages. 

The city believes there could be “hundreds” of additional garages that don’t meet the standards of the new ordinance. Officials had only identified those that included sliding glass doors, but there could be many more that are not in compliance based on usage or interior design. 

Changes in the new garage ordinance established back in March included prohibiting sliding glass doors from being installed as a front entrance, because they aren’t fully capable of clearing a path to allow a vehicle to park in the garage.

Another rule in the ordinance states that each household must allocate space for two off-street parked vehicles, whether that be in the garage or on the driveway.

Public service vehicles have had difficulty navigating through neighborhoods because of congestion from vehicles parked on the streets. This factor was one of the initial reasons the city had drafted a new garage ordinance; officials suspected that many residents had converted their garages to living spaces.

The new rule impacted many local Arab American residents, who had remodeled their garages to include household items such as couches, televisions and refrigerators for habitual use, often leaving no room to park a vehicle in the garage. 

Upon establishing the new ordinance, the city was quick to clarify that residents are allowed to have electronics and refrigerators in their garages, however they are not allowed to “live, sleep, eat, or cook” in the space. Bathrooms and open-flame heaters are also prohibited. 

Homeowners who plan on selling their home are also required to convert their garage back to normal before putting their house on the market. According to the city, several homeowners intent on selling have already complied.

Two court cases pending 

Since the ordinance was implemented, several residents have expressed their dismay towards the new rules and now two of them have cases before 19th District Court Chief Judge Sam Salamey. They are challenging the new ordinance and refusing to remove the sliding glass doors from their garages. 

One of them is Muheeb Nabulsy, who resides on Orchard Ave. Nabulsy told The Arab American News that there is no reason for him to remove his sliding glass door as he has room to park four vehicles on his driveway. He also demonstrated how he could easily navigate a vehicle in and out of his garage without damaging the sliding glass door. 

Nabulsy said his case has been tied up in court for more than six months as city inspectors, prosecutors and department heads continue to give him the runaround. Nabulsy said he was informed by the Buildings and Safety Department that SilverLine, the company that manufactured his sliding glass door, was approved by the city. 

Nabulsy was told the inspector who originally looked at his garage is no longer affiliated with the city. He said since then, his garage has been inspected on five different occasions.  A sixth inspection is expected later this month and his case has now been moved to early December. 

“I’m not denying them from inspecting my garage, they are more than welcome to do that. I’m just not understanding why they keep coming back for inspections,” Nabulsy said. 

During the briefing this week, city officials said they will be waiting to see how Nabulsy’s case plays out in court in order to determine what circumstances would require the removal of a sliding glass door. The city is looking to use his case in particular as a “model” for the rest of the garages. 

Nabulsy said he doesn’t like the word “converted,” a term the city seems to frequently throw around. He said he “enhanced” his garage, along with the rest of his property. He spent more than $5,000 installing the sliding glass door and placing tiles on the floor.

He added that his family does not live in the garage, nor do they cook in it. It is used as a space for his family to smoke cigarettes and hookah and host occasional gatherings with family and friends.  The garage includes outdoor furniture, two tables and a TV. 

“I just want to know why do I need to remove the door?” he asked. “Everything is legal. I can move my car inside of the garage. If they told me to place two cars inside of my garage, I could do it. I even have room for storage. I’m ready to take this to the circuit court, and if they reject it, I’m ready to take it to the Supreme Court.”