Saratoga, California Since 1955
News
|
City charges Costa $86,000 for stilt house site cleanup Lien on Quito Road property will ensure that city gets repaid By Kate Carter The city council brought its dealings with Michael Costa and his Quito Road stilt house to a close last week by taking steps to get its costs in the matter paid for. All that remains is for Costa to do his part. If he doesn't pay the city's approximately $86,000 bill for tearing down the infamous house that plagued neighbors and city officials for 18 months, then a nuisance abatement lien on the property will make sure the city gets reimbursed. The lien, approved by the council at its June 19 meeting, will require that money be repaid whenever the house changes ownership. "This is to ensure that the city does get repaid," City Attorney Richard Taylor said. After the council's approval, staff was able to send Costa a bill for the house demolition and excavation repair on the site, as well as get the lien recorded. The bill amount includes staff time spent on remedying the situation and the approximately $78,000 the city paid Stevens Creek Quarry Construction to fix the site, but does not include attorney's fees. Costa began an excavation under the two-story residence at the corner of Paseo Olivos Way about two years ago, without applying for a permit to do so. He eventually received a permit, but federal, county and city officials suspect the 4,000-square-foot basement excavation was intended to be used as a place to grow marijuana, with the house above it to serve as a base of illegal drug trafficking operations. Costa did not adhere to the requirements of other permits for construction on the site, which resulted in the structure's second story set on steel bars more than 10 feet above the ground. The city issued a stop-work order on the property two Aprils ago, but the house remained towering above the street and the neighborhood, and the excavation began to cause sinkage in the adjacent neighbor's backyard. Last January, the city hired a civil engineer to inspect the property and was told that the structure was unsafe. On May 2, the city received permission from Santa Clara County Superior Court to enter the property and demolish the structure, and on May 16, to the cheers of watching neighbors, it did so. Costa has been charged with several drug-related, money-laundering and violent crimes, and is in custody, awaiting trial. |
Feedback, or story ideas for the Saratoga News?
(Close this Window to go back to our home page.)
Copyright © SVCN, LLC. Maintained by GoGuys, Inc.