Homeowners fail to remove board

Stephen Curran

Friday, July 23, 2004 | 9:31 a.m.

An effort by a group of Summerlin homeowners to oust its association board Thursday night proved unsuccessful.

Fifty-nine people voted to throw the board out for entering into a contract with local lawyers in a closed session. That fell 10 votes short of the 69 needed to remove the executive board of the Silver Pines condominium association.

The board had been at the center of a neighborhood controversy after signing an agreement with lawyers to negotiate repairs needed within the complex.

Frank Fazio, a 75-year-old homeowner in the complex, was among the half-dozen Silver Pines residents to launch the door-to-door petition to remove the board, claiming its closed-door negotiations violated the association's bylaws.

"I'm not against anyone hiring an attorney to help us," said Fazio, a retired New York butcher who moved to his home in April. "It's that they never explained what defects they were looking for."

Fazio said he and other homeowners were upset that the potential legal action would hinder any attempts to sell their homes.

Alan Garth, the board president, said the decision would help the board accomplish the repairs, which had been postponed since the residents began circulating a petition to kick the board out.

He defended the decision to negotiate the contract in a closed executive session, saying the bylaws did not require it to be open.

"We just wanted somewhere we could sit without having this argument," Garth said. "I understand people are frustrated, but now we're going to do a full inspection."

Defects, as outlined in a presentation at Thursday's meeting by architect Christopher Allen, include cracked stucco, corrosion of metal railings and insufficiently sealed windows. Signature Homes, the builder of the project in 2000, agreed to perform the repairs after negotiating with Charles Litt, the Las Vegas attorney contracted to negotiate with the homebuilders.

Thursday's vote, which at times was reduced to a shouting match as Allen and Litt sparred with Fazio and other upset homeowners, had essentially stopped the inspections of the association's roughly 290 homes. So far, only two homes have been inspected, turning up shoddy roofs and construction defects that violate Clark County building codes, Allen told the homeowners.

Under Nevada law, the builders -- in this case Signature and Diversified Development -- have the right to perform any needed repairs, which if performed adequately would shield the companies from further litigation, Litt said.

"We're in the process of working out the repair with the builder," he said. "The builder under state law has the right to repair."

Under the contract, Litt's firm, Feiberg, Grant, Mayfield, Kaneda & Litt, would be reimbursed by the builders for their costs.

Several homeowners, including one man who asked that his name not be used, said they did not want the defects corrected because the possibility of further litigation would make it difficult to sell their homes.

"My house would be sold if it weren't for the lawyers," said the man, who claimed he lost a bidder after the real estate agent told the prospective buyer about the difficulties with the association.

Others, including homeowner Rowena Ramos, were pleased with the decision to keep the current board, saying it was too difficult to deal directly with the builders.

Ramos said her home, which she has lived in since 2001, has been a constant source of headaches, as she waits for noisy fans and improperly installed electrical wiring to be fixed.

"I'm so happy I could kiss the (board) president," said Ramos, who added she had repeatedly contacted representatives from the companies. "They (Signature and Diversified) laughed at me. All the workers laughed at me."