Court Okays Demo of Dilapidated Apartment

By Lookout Staff

June 8 -- A Court of Appeal has given the go-ahead to demolish a dilapidated building in Sunset Park seized from the owner by the City a year and a half ago.

In its written decision last week, the Second District Court of Appeal also upheld the appointment of a receiver who took over control of the three-unit apartment building at 2438 Ocean Park Boulevard after the owner refused numerous attempts to bring the property up to code.

The court held that it was reasonable to allow the demolition since it was not economically feasible to rehabilitate the building. The court also noted that trial courts have broad discretion in appointing receivers and overseeing their actions in managing properties.

“Apartment owners need to know that their buildings can be taken away if they refuse to follow the law,” said Deputy City Attorney Adam Radinsky who is handling the case for Santa Monica. “They must correct code violations within a reasonable time.

“Receivership is drastic medicine, but we won’t hesitate to use it in proper cases to protect the well-being of the community,” he said.

The owner, Guillermo Gonzalez, appealed a January 2005 Superior Court decision that the property was in a chronic state of disrepair and had become a dangerous blight to the community.

Gonzalez, who lived in one of the units, also appealed the appointment of the receiver as well as the order allowing the demolition.

He argued that the City had not complied with certain technical requirements of the receivership law and that demolishing the building would be unfair because he wanted to remain living there and preferred to pay the cost of repairs instead.

In January 2005, Gonzalez, who was renting out beds by the week, was charged with violating a lengthy list of code violations for, among other things, having an outdoor dining area, no heat, illegal wiring and being "overrun with garbage, flammable materials, and junk," according to the City Attorneys Office.

The City had filed criminal charges against Gonzalez in 1997 and again in 2002, to compel him to bring the building -- which for years had been the site of chronic criminal activity -- up to code, Radinsky said.

Both times Gonzalez was convicted and served time in county jail -- nine months in 1999 and several weeks late last year -- for refusing to make the needed repairs.

The receiver, Century City-based attorney David Pasternak, assumed full control of the property.