Lakewood Passes Controversial Ordinance Protecting Developers From Lawsuits
LAKEWOOD, Colo. (CBS4) - Lakewood is weakening a state law that protects homeowners from home construction problems.
Lakewood city leaders passed an ordinance late Monday night that gives developers and builders a right to repair defects before facing litigation. The city says lawsuits are hurting growth, but protesters outside the city council meeting said without the threat of a lawsuit, the door for bad builders would be wide open.
"This ordinance would make it virtually impossible for condo and townhome owners to hold their builder accountable for shoddy work," Build Our Homes Right organizer Chad Otto said.
Lakewood Mayor Bob Murphy calls the ordinance necessary to clear a path for developers to build along the West Rail Line that runs predominately through the town.
"Not a single attached home, not a single townhome, not a single current condominium; this only applies to future projects," Murphy said.
City leaders imagine the new light rail stations throughout town to be bustling city centers. Instead, developers have stayed away, focusing on apartment projects with lower risks of litigation.
"This type of an ordinance is designed specifically to protect the developer, and it strips away the rights of the homeowner," Beauvallon General Manager Larry Healy said.
Healy calls the plan dangerous. In 2007, owners at Denver's Beauvallon sued because of 80 defects in construction and $17 million in repairs. Healy says the ordinance would drop that kind of tab on homeowners and financially ruin them.
"It would totally bankrupt the majority of the people that live there," Healy said.
Similar bills failed in the state Legislature last session.
In Denver developers in the city's booming downtown have opted more often than not to build apartment complexes instead of condos for purchase, in part to avoid costly legal issues from a homeowners association.
The Lakewood City Council passed the ordinance 7-4 after nearly two hours of public comment.
