Owner of Samoa house may sue city

Elise Gee

MESA VERDE -- An attorney representing the owner of a large,

controversial home being remodeled on Samoa Place told the City Council

on Tuesday her client might have no choice but to take the city to court.

Jennifer Friend of Wellman and Warren, LLP, spoke on behalf of Tracy

Stevenson, whose Mesa Verde home was being discussed by the council. In

the end, Friend’s statement that Stevenson might be forced to sue the

city did not deter the council from voting 5 to 0 to pass a resolution

supporting their earlier decision against Stevenson and then voting 5 to

0 not to grant Stevenson a rehearing on a setback issue.

In the last few months, the City Council and Planning Commission have

determined that Stevenson’s remodeled home has a third story and is

therefore prohibited. They also determined that the house violates the

required setback, forcing the removal of a stairwell.

However, these determinations were made after most of the framing of

the house was completed and after building permits, which were issued in

error, were revoked.

“Basically, it sends a scary message to homeowners who want to remodel

in Costa Mesa ... that they can’t have a good faith reliance on the

issuance of building permits,” Friend said.

It has been more than 10 months since Stevenson tore down two-thirds

of her home to start the remodeling project. So far, she and her

boyfriend Joseph Warner have invested about $100,000 in the project,

Friend said.

Discussions between Stevenson and the city have been ongoing. Several

attempts have been made to reach an acceptable compromise but to no

avail.

Resident Robin Lefler, who has helped organize a coalition of

neighbors who oppose the remodeling, said the issue is not about style

but about zoning codes.

Friend argued that the time to raise those issues passed after

building permits were issued.

Some have speculated that because the city has admitted to making a

mistake that they might have trouble defending themselves in court. But

that’s not necessarily the case, said City Attorney Jerry Scheer.

“There is the allowance in the legal system for errors to be made,”

Scheer said. “It happens. The question remains whether the interest of

the community outweighs the interest of the property owner.”

There have been numerous cases across the state and country where

courts have upheld errors on the part of cities but each case is

determined individually, he added.

But Friend contends that case law is on the side of Stevenson. Friend

herself said she won a settlement that included damages from the city of

Anaheim in a similar case this year.

She said a whole slew of state and federal cases support a property

owner’s vested right to complete remodeling as approved by cities and

that those approvals cannot be revoked once the right is granted.

Still, both Stevenson and city officials said they hope the matter can

be resolved outside of court.

“That they might be willing to talk about some possible solutions

doesn’t dilute the fact that there are constitutionally guaranteed

property rights,” Friend said.