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Court rules in favor of developer in Ridgefield property fight

Judge says CCRs of Helen’s View Homeowner’s Association are not enforceable

By Jake Thomas, Columbian political reporter
Published: December 19, 2016, 6:01am

A developer seeking to build on a lot located on the edge of the city of Ridgefield scored a victory in court Friday, but the legal drama surrounding the subdivision that’s ensnared property owners won’t end until February.

Earlier this year, the Helen’s View Homeowner’s Association filed a lawsuit against the Holt Opportunity Fund. The lawsuit states that Holt is seeking to build housing on a vacant stretch of land in the subdivision at a higher density than what’s allowed by the covenants, conditions and restrictions the homeowner’s association amended for the subdivision in 2008. The CCRs restrict lot sizes to 31,798 square feet. However, Holt had entered into a conflicting annexation agreement with the city of Ridgefield that included a density requirement of six residential units per acre.

Residents worried that the development would affect their property values and quality of life. The attorneys for Holt also filed “lis pendens” on the property owned by the homeowners in the subdivision. Lis pendens alerts potential buyers of pending litigation involving a property and clouds its title. One homeowner had the sale of her home fall through because of it, causing her to lose thousands of dollars.

On Friday, Clark County Superior Court Judge Daniel Stahnke ruled in favor of Holt, which argued that because the CCRs restricting lot size hadn’t been unanimously adopted by all 32 property owners in the subdivision, they are not enforceable.

However, Mark Erikson, the attorney for the homeowner’s association, told The Columbian that he will argue that the plat carries a covenant that incorporates minimum lot requirements of three-quarters of an acre. He said the next action won’t be until February, and until then, the lis pendens actions will stand.

Attorneys for Holt did not respond to a request for comment Friday.

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Columbian political reporter