Building draws ire

By JASON ARMSTRONG

Tribune-Herald staff writer

Jack Hash thought he was getting an idyllic setting, but a multiyear battle over a neighbor’s illegal home has him regretting the move, contemplating selling and wondering where’s the building enforcement.

“We just made a big mistake here,” the Kalapana Seaview Estates resident said. “It was a beautiful-view lot when we started.”

Rather than seeing the blue Pacific Ocean, all Hash now sees is red.

That’s because a make-shift, multistory structure sits on the site where Hawaii County had approved a 272-square-foot storage/workshop. The county’s current tax records list it as a “wooden storage” building worth $12,300.

Detailed complaints from Hash and at least one other Seaview resident haven’t produced compliance by the property owner, who continues to enlarge the structure, according to neighbors.

“It’s been more than a reasonable amount of time for the owner to respond, I would think,” said Hash, who last May complained to the Department of Public Works’ Building Division about the home across from his.

Planning Department records show “this matter has been ongoing since 2002,” at which time property owner Charles Collins “indicated that he would get the structure properly permitted,” Planning Director Bobby Jean Leithead Todd wrote in a Aug. 23 memo to Building Division Chief Jai Ho Cheng to inform him of the violation.

“Obviously that has not been the case,” wrote Leithead Todd, who had dispatched a planning inspector to verify a violation in response to a complaint. “The continued presence of this unpermitted structure negates the county’s efforts regarding the need for a permit and the effectiveness of enforcement.”

It also has Hash questioning why he bought construction permits, underwent inspections and has paid higher taxes for his legal home.

“The county really gave us a hard time,” Hash said of his experience building a home with longtime friend Sandra Akaka, whom he said is listed as the property owner although he retains “interest” in it. Hash said he’s authorized to speak for Akaka.

“If I knew there was no compliance, I’d say I’d be a fool to follow the rules,” Hash said. “I feel like you’re punished for following the rules at this point.”

County tax records list Amber Lee and Wilda Marie Collins as the current owners of the 7,500-square-foot lot and “storage shed” located at 12-7037 Akanikolea St.

Reached by telephone Thursday, Wilda Marie Collins said she couldn’t talk because she was busy entertaining visiting family.

The Building Division sent a certified letter dated June 8 to inform the landowners of the unpermitted construction and setting a July 8 deadline to make it legal.

“We have no record of any inspections,” building inspector Doris Taketa wrote to the landowners, whose names were blacked out in the copy the county provided to the Tribune-Herald.

When that didn’t happen, a second certified letter dated Aug. 11 was issued giving the owners until Sept. 30 — the typical time frame is 30 days — to obtain building permits, remove the violations or face a fine.

“You had notified our office that you were going to work with your architect or structural engineer to be in compliance,” wrote Cheng.

That didn’t produce the desired results, however, so on Oct. 25 a third certified letter was sent ordering the landowners to pay a $50 fine by Nov. 25 or face a daily $50 penalty “until corrective actions are completed.”

The fine has not been paid, said Brandon Gonzalez, deputy public works director.

“More serious options” are being considered, he said of the county’s authority to impose a daily fine of up to $1,000, ask the judge to levy a penalty, or do both.

Asked why enforcement is taking so long, Gonzalez said, “That’s the process,” adding it takes time to demonstrate to the court that the county is acting fairly and not trampling an owner’s due process rights.

“The timing is we are following up on that, and we’re in the process,” he said.

The complaint that triggered Leithead Todd’s letter was made by Seaview homeowner John Dubois, who said he moved into the Puna community knowing the Collinses’ structure was located close to his home.

Fearing it could blow down an injure a person or property, Dubois said he’s still seeking help in resolving matter he feels involves both safety and government fairness. He said he’s seen people staying in the home overnight.

“I have to kind of bite the bullet and continue to live here ’cause it’s not that easy to pick up and move on,” Dubois said.

He and Hash aren’t the only ones to complain about unpermitted homes, however.

During 2011, the Department of Public Works received approximately 150 complaints, roughly half from East Hawaii and half from West Hawaii, said Gonzalez, who noted most involved building without a required permit.

After verifying a violation, the department makes a verbal warning to comply, Gonzalez said.

If that warning is ignored, the department then issues an official notice of violation giving the landowner 30 days to correct the problem or undertake an approved plan to gain compliance, he said.

Landowners may appeal each of those actions to the county’s Board of Appeals, which can delay enforcement, Gonzalez said.

Twenty-nine of the complaints received last year, nearly one in five, triggered a notice of violation letter, he said.

“There were no fines imposed or collected” during 2011, he said.

The notices prompted seven of the 29 offending landowners to correct the problems, while the department still is working to gain compliance by the 22 others, he said, noting the Collinses’ property is one of the unresolved cases.

“I think it’s encouraging that we can gain voluntary compliance,” Gonzalez added.

That’s little consolation for Hash, however.

“I’m at the point where I give up,” he said. “I tried. I had dreams, and I failed.”

Email Jason Armstrong at jarmstrong@hawaiitribune-herald.com.