Ruby Apartments Project Update 20150323

On March 12, Don MacSparran, of the Oakbrook 4^th Addition, reported that he “…spoke with Dave on Monday evening; the City Attorney is reviewing the ruling--once the City staff gets her guidance, they will proceed. I have asked that the fence be removed and the entire tract cleaned-up and maintained to the standards in the municipal code--until the developer either does something with the land or sells it…”

On March 15, Sylvia Allen, of the Oakbrook 4^th Addition, reported the need to begin consideration of ways to maintain the property as park/open space, and suggested a way, using the Limited Improvement District provisions of state law, and spelling out the means for doing so.  Ken Karch provided early comments outlining several methods for doing so, and urging early action.

On March 16, Don MacSparran reported that “…as expected, the developer has filed a motion for reconsideration with the superior court today, March 16. I also spoke with City Staff and several council members this evening prior to the city council meeting. The city will have a city code enforcement team check on the 7701 Ruby Dr SW tract and provide the developer with a list of code violations to be fixed, if any. Three cars may soon be towed from the north side of the property…(T)he administrative hearing which is pending a completed arborist report, remains open and ongoing; still awaiting the arborist report…”

On March 18, 2015, Don MacSparran reported the reconsideration hearing is scheduled for April 10, 2015.

On March 19, Nicole Greeson, of the 4^th Addition, referenced an article on the status of the Ruby Apartments lawsuit, in the Tacoma News Tribune, at

http://www.thenewstribune.com/2015/03/19/3697837_judge-favors-lakewood-homeowners.html?rh=1

Recent contributions have also been made by Nancy Dilworth and Ken Karch on the economics of alternative development of Tract E, and on the possible loss of tree protections.

On March 23, 2015, Don MacSparran reported he “…spoke with the City this morning to get an update on the post pre-hearing order and continuance notice dated February 4, 2015 by the City of Lakewood Hearing Examiner. The City is still waiting on an updated arborist report from the developer. Paragraph 4 of the February 4th Order had estimated that receipt of a new arborist report AND review by the City would take less than three weeks total to complete…”

Ruby Apartments Summary Judgement Handed Down

Attached is a summary by the 4th Addition's President, Eric Greeson, of Judge Crushcoff's Summary Judgement in the Ruby Apartments lawsuit, handed down yesterday, March 6, 2015.  Additional information will follow, but thought the Oakbrook Townhouses blog readers deserved as much information as possible as soon as possible.

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To Oakbrook 4^th Addition Homeowners and interested parties,

As put out by your HOA board Friday, the ruling regarding our filing for Summary Judgment was granted. Please see our attorney Dianne Conway’s summary below:

“As you know, Judge Chushcoff granted Oakbrook 4^th Addition HOA’s Motion for Summary Judgment yesterday morning.  What this means is he agreed with our argument that the Covenants restrict any development of Tract E to detached, single-family homes of no more than two stories in height, regardless of what the zoning code allowed at the time Ruby 62 Holdings LLC applied for permits.

Ruby 62 Holdings LLC has 10 days to file a motion for reconsideration, which I think is very unlikely,  and 30 days to file an appeal, which its attorney says it will.  If the LLC does file an appeal, there will be a  briefing process followed by oral argument (unless the Court of Appeals decides it doesn’t want oral argument), after which the Court of Appeals will issue a decision three to six months later.  Overall, the process would take one to one-and-a-half years.  In the meantime, Judge Chushcoff’s ruling will stand.  

The judge’s ruling does not affect the permitting process with the City.  It will be up to the LLC whether it continues with that process or not if and when it files an appeal.  I suspect that it will, since if its application expires, it will no longer be vested under the old zoning code, which would make the appeal pointless. Mind you, the LLC’s attorney also indicated that the LLC had some financial problems, so that may influence the LLC’s actions as well.”

We are very pleased with this outcome. Thank you all for your support. Time spent preparing for and attending the Summary Judgment will incur attorney’s fees larger than previous months.  I understand that financial restraints may have discouraged some from contributing to our legal fund, as a large number of homeowners have yet to contribute. However, this issue affects all of Oakbrook and even a small donation has an impact. Please show your support by sustaining our legal fund.

As always, visit our websites’ forum section for any questions you may have.

Thank You,

Eric Greeson

President 4^th Addition HOA