IRVINE : City Says Couple’s Home Violates Codes

The city this week filed a complaint against the owners of a Tudor castle-style home in the Ranch village, charging that the 12-year-old remodeling project violates a variety of building and safety codes.

The move comes about a month after city building inspectors armed with search warrants spent an hour taking photos inside the unfinished home, which has been the subject of numerous neighborhood protests and heated public meetings. The city says its goal is to get the owners, Fern and Victor Ganish, to complete work on the house.

The Ganishes live in the house even though the interior is not completed. The Ganishes have said that flooring, drywall and plumbing still need to be installed.

The complaint, filed Monday in Harbor Municipal Court, claims that the Ganishes have violated seven municipal codes, including building, height and safety rules.

The Ganishes have denied the allegations. They claim city officials harassed them and held their project to an unfairly high standard. Fern Ganish has blamed the slow pace of construction on city interference and her husband’s poor health.

An arraignment in the case is scheduled for next week. If found to be in violation of the codes, the Ganishes could face thousands of dollars in fines and up to six months in jail.

But City Manager Paul O. Brady Jr. said the city’s main goal is to have the Ganishes complete work on the house.

“Ideally, we want to get them to bring the structure up to living condition,” Brady said. “We don’t want to chase them out of their house or have them tear it down. We are just asking that it not be in violation.”

The Ganishes began converting the one-story ranch-style house into a two-story Tudor castle in the early 1980s.