LUCERNE – The county Board of Supervisors gave developer Dominic Affinito 30 days to evict residents living in an old hotel he owns on Highway 20 in Lucerne. The order comes from county Code Enforcement, which along with many community members considers the hotel a nuisance.
Affinito said he”s owned the property since approximately May of 2005 and plans to tear down the current structure to build “a nice first-class motel,” at a cost he estimated at “four or five million.”
An investigative summary states that from March 2004 through May 2005 approximately fifteen code actions were taken on the property following confirmed complaints about substandard dwelling units and dock, inoperable vehicles at the properties and safety violations.
In June 2005, county code staff noted, “the property had been converted to studio apartments in violation of the Lake County Zoning Ordinance.”
Affinito said the current use of the hotel as long-term rental units had been going on for 10 years, which he called “almost a de facto zone change.”
The properties are zoned “CH”, Highway Commercial, which allows one residence as long as a commercial use is in place. Community Development Director Rick Coel clarified later Tuesday that this arrangement would accommodate a hotel manager living on the property.
Coel further stated that his own estimate was about five years, not 10, that the building had been used as apartments.
Then in July 2005, county staff updated the case file to reflect Dominic and Juliette Affinito as the property owners. In a written response to a notice from the county informing him of the converted use violations, Affinito said he planned to break ground within a year on a 70 unit “higher end hotel” and to rent units through the winter until he could make repairs.
The report states that Affinito got repair permits and “made efforts toward compliance.”
A 30-day notice was issued in June 2006 following more complaints about substandard living conditions, an unsafe dock, safety violations and the continued use of the hotel as apartments. After “minor repairs” were made within that 30 days, Affinito was given another 30 days to comply.
More incidents followed, including a small fire caused by a faulty electrical outlet in August 2006 and a broken water pipe causing damage to an adjoining unit in March 2007, according to the investigation report.
An inspection warrant served with the help of the Lake County Sheriff”s Department revealed code violations, health and safety violations and uniform administrative violations, says the report, for which Affinito”s properties are still in violation.
Recommendations from Code Enforcement Division Manager Voris Brumfield and Code Enforcement Officer Roderic Hillard included halting long-term rental of the hotel”s rooms to “non-transient occupants” and imposing a 30-day stay limit.
Another recommendation was for Affinito to get necessary permits to either repair or demolish unsafe platform and pilings on the docks adjoining the hotel. Affinito said the pilings had been repaired since the abatement order was issued.
Although the board could not expand the nuisance abatement to include tearing down the building itself, Coel said the order will go back before the board for revisions. Coel said the order may require Affinito to either repair or demolish the hotel.
The 30-day limit, Coel said, is more of a guideline if progress is made in that time frame. Also, existing tenant laws may require that Affinito be given more time to evict his tenants, said Coel.
“The town is asking that they correct the visual blight, even if it”s not in this order. I urge you to do that,” said Dist. 3 Supervisor Denise Rushing, addressing Affinito.
Lucerne Residents outlined the problem for the board beyond what Code Enforcement photographs showed.
Sophie Jensen, who lives in Lucerne, described steady deterioration and “no two matching windows” in the building, addressing Affinito”s comments about improvements he had made since he bought the property in May of 2005.
Some were covered with what appeared to be camouflage cloth, some with tin foil and plywood, she said. “It looks like every violation that can be found has been violated,” said Jensen, and urged the board to take immediate action.
Lucerne Resident Lenny Matthews said she”d witnessed the “appalling squalor” in the hotel”s units on three occasions, asking Affinito, “How could anybody with your money rent that?” In closing her comments, Matthews asked Affinito to move into the hotel.
Contact Tiffany Revelle at trevelle@record-bee.com.
