Two Developers
Hawaiian House Hassle
Anne Reynolds earned a legal win following a long court battle. A judge ordered a developer to rip down a $500,000 house in Hawaii that was built on the wrong property and overrun by squatters. The two-bed, three-bath home was mistakenly constructed on her acre of land in Puna’s Hawaiian Paradise Park when it was supposed to be built on the next lot. “This was not an instance of minor encroachment, but an entire house was built on Lot 114 instead of Lot 115,” according to a court order. Anne bought the plot for $22,500 in 2018 with plans to move from California to host meditative healing women’s retreats with a view of the ocean. But she then discovered last summer that a home was built on her property and sold by the developer.
“Mr. Lawrence testified he built the home on Lot 114 instead of Lot 115 because he counted out the lots using the telephone poles,” according to the order. “But he built the home on the wrong side of the telephone pole.” During the year long showdown in court squatters descended on the home. When Anne visited in February, the house was littered with feces. “There was poop on the floor. In the hallway bathroom, Anne said earlier this year. The attorney for Reynolds said, “While we didn’t get everything we wanted, this is a significant step in the right direction; the house is going to be taken down. She has a little bit of closure to that.”
Respect for the Fuji view
Compare that to: A newly constructed residential building in suburban Tokyo will be pulled down the month before the apartments were due to be handed over to buyers, after incensed locals complained the structure blocked their views of Mt. Fuji. The 10-story apartment building on Fujimi Street—which translates to ‘Fuji view.’ The building was comprised of 18 housing units, which range in price from around $445,000 to $636,000 according to the builder.
Sekisui House said in a statement late Tuesday it had “voluntarily decided to discontinue the project.” “There is no denying that the current situation has an enormous impact on the landscape. We have decided to prioritize the view from the road,” it said. There was nothing illegal about the construction process, but “our consideration for long-distance views of Mount Fuji has been insufficient.” For some residents, the decision was welcome news. “We didn’t want to lose the appeal of our town, where on a sunny day you have a clear view of Mount Fuji.” The debacle is not the only recent flashpoint around views of Mount Fuji, which is covered in snow most of the year but attracts hundreds of thousands of climbers in the summer.
Building humor
I was always a home builder
but lately I’ve developed an apartment complex.
Every married man should forget his mistakes, there’s no use in two people remembering the same thing.
Where would we be without builders?
Outside.
I visited my friend at his new house.
He told me to make myself at home. So I threw him out. I hate having visitors.
July 12th Birthdays
1971 – Kristi Yamaguchi 1979 – Michelle Rodriquez, 1990 – Phoebe Tonkin, 1997 – Malala Youzafzai
1973 – Jake Wood, 1989 – Topher Grace, 1949 – Richard Simmons, 1854 – George Eastman