The City of Ferndale submitted documents in Whatcom County Superior Court last week informing the court how they believe the clock tower owner/builder failed to meet a mutually agreed upon October 31st deadline.
Last spring, the city and the owners of the residence at 2147 Main Street, Artur and Margaret Rojsza, agreed to dismiss a myriad of lawsuits against each other in return for entering into a settlement agreement that defined what was required of both parties so construction on the now famous “clock tower” could move forward.
In June, the Rojszas made it past the first significant hurdle with a satisfactory structural inspection. As a result, in September the City gave the go-ahead to continue construction. Things began to visibly change on the structure after that. A variety of exterior materials were used creating a unique patchwork appearance. Most notable were large shiny tiles and sheeting resembling brickwork.
October 31st marked a significant deadline for the project per the settlement agreement. Per the February settlement agreement, all exterior construction, roofing and siding were to be completed by that date.
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Click for more informationIn an email dated October 31st from Artur Rojsza to the city and its attorneys, Rojsza stated,
We have fulfill condition of agreement between City of Ferndale and ourselves (Artur and Margaret Rojsza) to complete all exterior construction on our house.
But according to documents filed in the court by the city on November 25th, the city felt the Rojszas had failed to complete several of the items required and had deviated from the city-approved building plans. In addition, the city points out, construction methods and materials used appear to violate building codes, not just Ferndale’s but also international building codes.
In the settlement agreement, both the city and the Rojszas agreed to make the court the final arbitrator regarding the Rojszas’ building permit with limited or no ability to appeal the court’s judgements.
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According to city staff in an email to Discover Ferndale,
We hope that this issue can be resolved amicably, to that end the City has not revoked the Rojszas building permit in hopes that the work can be completed to the standards of the agreement signed by both parties.
At the time this story was published, no response to a request for comment had been received from the Rojszas.
The city is asking the court to pursue a number of different remedies per the settlement agreement. One item is a $10,000 fine as a result of, per the documents filed, Rojszas having
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Click for more information- missed the agreed upon deadline
- deviated from the approved building plans
- continued to violate Ferndale and international building codes
The city is asking the court to require the Rojszas remove the installed exterior materials within 30 days including,
- mirror-like tiles
- Tyvek home wrap that has been painted (manufacturer advises paint prevents the wrap from breathing as it needs to)
- linoleum-like, linoleum material and rolled plastic sheeting
- burlap and burlap-like material
- brick and brick-veneer on the clock tower
In addition to removing exterior materials, the city is also asking the court to require the Rojszas to accomplish several items, including the following, within 30 days,
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Click for more information- reinstall unpainted home wrap over exposed areas
- apply stucco or cement-like siding on the clock tower section per the building plan
- install permanent roof coverings per the building plan including a copper metal roof over the clock tower section per the building plan
- remove windows installed that are not included in the building plan
- install cedar shingle siding or grey painted siding per the building plan
- install a metal or wood railing around the roof structure on the south tower
- remove tent structures from the property
In its filing, the city also asks the court to require Rojszas to remove equipment, machinery, materials, etc. from the front and side yards and install a six-foot tall sight-obscuring fence on all sides of the property.
It is unknown if and how quickly the court will act on the city’s requests and as of the time this story was published no court dates could be found.