Politics & Government
City: Garage Apartment Is Illegal; We Want Our Money Back
The city of San Clemente tries to recoup grant money for low-income housing it thinks was improperly used; the landlord says no way.
A legal dispute between a San Clemente landlord and grant recipient and the city could come to a conclusion over the next few weeks, said a lawyer involved in the case.
Rebecca Jaffe was cited in 2009 for having an illegal garage apartment, but she contends that the city approved the refurbishing of the garage by virtue of granting her the money to do it through community development block grants.
These grants are disbursed from the feds to cities, which then dole out the money to promote projects, some of which create affordable housing.
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On Sept. 10, 2009, code inspectors received a complaint that a home at 121 W. Escalones had converted its garage into “an illegal unit,” with somebody living there, according to court documents.
Five days later, the city conducted an inspection of the property and found what the anonymous complaint alleged was true: The garage apartment was built in an area that was not zoned for one.
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Jaffe contends that the city had “actually participated and contracted” with her, through a government assistance program, to be able to build the unit.
"The permit covered residential building alteration and remodeling for the subject property,” Jaffe says in the suit.
“The case is a zoning issue,” said Jaffe attorney Noam Duzman. “The city had approved the unit by virtue of having given the money to build.”
The city’s suit maintains that Jaffe was biting the hand that fed by violating the zoning ordinances and that she must “convert the property back to legal status,” according to court documents.
Further complicating matters, the city not only demands Jaffe get rid of the apartment, but also demands the grant money back. Jaffe's fighting this, saying the city has unjustly harassed her during the entire legal process.
“Despite plaintiff notifying the city of the city’s obligation according to the past agreements and circumstances … the city continued in bad faith to maliciously and intentionally threaten criminal liability on the disputed issues concerning the subject property,” said Jaffe in her filing against the city's complaints.
Duzman is “hopeful the conversation between both sides” will lead to an amicable resolution.
The issue that has been going back and forth for years, but Duzman said he hoped his client and the city will resolve the issue within the next month.
