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Neighbors alert city that house is secretly a monster
Building officials stop work on Nevada Ave. remodel site
By Chantal Lamers
San Jose building officials rescinded a building permit issued to homeowners of 1198 Nevada Ave., after neighbors discovered the would-be remodeled home was in violation of the so-called monster house ordinance.
According to plans submitted by architect Sal Caruso and homeowners Don and Doreen Araki, the square footage of the lot measured 10,727 square feet. The lot actually measures 5,500 square feet.
Work never started on the house under the design-review process adopted by San Jose city council members late last year, a remodeled home occupying 45 percent of a lot or less would not require design review. The Araki's, with their 5,500-square-foot lot, could build a 2,475-square-foot home legally. The Araki's permit called for a 3,773-square-foot structure.
Building Permit Manager Scott Troyer says if the correct information had been on the processing form, it would have triggered the review process.
Susan Walton, San Jose planning department principal planner, says that Caruso is a former San Jose City planning commissioner. She also says he is a familar face in building and planner departments because he often redesigns San Jose homes.
The design law says that a home that occupies between 45 percent and 65 percent of its lot size is required to conform to specific design guidelines based on the surrounding neighborhood. A home with square footage more than 65 percent of its lot size, such as the Araki's, is required to undergo the full design-review process, including a public hearing. A home's total floor area doesn't include garages and basements.
The building permit was approved by the department on July 31. Officials from the department issued the a stop work order Aug. 8.
Michelle McGurk, chief of staff for Council member Frank Fiscalini, says Nevada Avenue neighbors were curious about what was going to be built on the property. They checked the plans. She says neighbors were surprised at the erroneous statements and contacted city officials.
One Nevada Avenue neighbor, who did not want to be named, says she doesn't understand how the plans for the house got approved. She says the house would have overshadowed other homes on the street.
Caruso says the error was the mistake of an employee.
He says the drawings were created in 1998, and an employee penciled in the incorrect square-footage of the home.
Caruso, who has run his own architecture firm for 12 years, says he should have noticed the blatant error.
"If I were perfect, no errors would occur," he says. "But I'm not. I never bothered to check the square-footage. I should have."
Caruso says about three weeks ago, he discovered the error and went to the building division to report the mistake. Building department officials explained to Caruso that neighbors already reported the mistake.
"This is a matter of human error," he says. "The mistake was caught through my office and it was remedied."
Joe Horwedel, deputy director of planning, says it surprised him that the incorrect numbers got through without the architect noticing sooner.
He says homeowners and architects are required to fill out a single-family house permit form to ensure that the information on the plans is correct. He says the form was created to avoid these kinds of situations.
The processing form asks for the lot size, gross house size, total square-footage of the structure and the calculated floor area ratio. A checklist on the form includes questions like whether the house is greater than 30 feet or if the floor area ratio of the house is greater than 45 percent.
Horwedel says that when the architect and homeowners filled out the form, they should have caught the error.
However, he says it's not unusual for neighbors to call the planning or building department and inquire about a home being remodeled in their neighborhood. He says sometimes, neighbors catch mistakes.
This is the first time such an error was discovered, he says.
Horwedel says had no one noticed the square-footage error, it may have never been discovered. Although city inspectors are sent out to check on property, inspectors don't usually check to see if a single family house permit was required, he says.
The Araki's bought the home on Nevada Ave. in April of 1998. That year, they hired Caruso to draw up plans to remodel the home. The couple has lived in Willow Glen for 11 years.
Due to personal problems, the Araki's say they were forced to put the plans on the back burner. Last December they were ready to submit their plans for city review. But by that time, the monster house ordinance had passed.
Mrs. Araki says she was aware the ordinance passed, but wanted to try and get the plans approved. "We spent a lot of money on these plans," she says.
She says Caruso took the plans to the building division and was told that the house was still compliant under the new design-review process.
However, Caruso says, in order to comply with the monster house ordinance, he lowered the height of the roof from 32 feet to 30 feet.
Mrs. Araki says she was unaware of the mismatched numbers on the plans. Mrs. Araki says she wishes neighbors would have consulted her or Caruso about the problem.
"This all came as a real shock to us," Mrs. Araki says. She says she would have been more than happy to change the plans if they were unhappy.
Since the couple discovered the plans are not compliant, they are reviewing their options. One possibility is to apply for a single family house permit so they can build their dream house.
Mr. Araki says he wants to work things out with the neighbors.
"Life is too short to make enemies with your neighbors before you even move in."
Officials from the building department say work can't continue on the property until the code enforcement building inspector has revoked the order in writing.
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Willow Glen, California Since 1992
