VICTORIA – An elderly Vancouver woman who was hounded by city building inspectors for home renovations she did 36 years earlier to accommodate a disabled child is highlighted in an annual report by British Columbia’s outgoing ombudsperson.

Kim Carter said that after her office intervened, the woman she called Janet was able to reach a compromise with city officials who sought costly home repairs from the work done in 1979.

“One of the things that is really interesting is some people do keep records and occasionally it pays off as it did here,” Carter said Thursday after her report was released. “This lady could provide records herself, which led us to determine that we thought the city hadn’t got it right.”

Carter, whose office received more than 7,800 complaints last year, focused much of her report on municipal governments. She is retiring after nine years on the job.

“My time as ombudsperson leaves me with the knowledge that this office can make a significant positive difference in the lives of individuals and communities,” Carter said in the report.

She cited another investigation involving a northern B.C. resident who received a letter of apology from the Kitimat-Stikine regional district after an employee at an animal shelter injected his dog with pre-euthanasia medication.

That happened just before a court granted the dog, named Siri, a stay of execution.