Lawsuit cites complaints at Sabine condo project downtown
CWS attorneys meeting Monday with residents to resolve issues
http://www.statesman.com/business/content/business/stories/other/03/14/0314CWS.html
By Shonda Novak
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Residents of the Sabine on Fifth have sued the developer of the downtown Austin condominium project, CWS Capital Partners, alleging problems with the building and its elevators that they say pose safety hazards to the occupants. Additionally, Los Angeles-based CWS has not paid more than $150,000 in 2008 property taxes on the building, at Sabine at East Fifth streets, and has stopped marketing the project, though less than half of the 80 units have been sold. Officials from the Travis County Tax Collector/Assessor's office said they are prepared to take legal action as soon as next week to collect the overdue taxes.
The Sabine is a 10-story former office building that CWS converted into residential condominiums in 2007, with units priced from the mid-$190,000s to the mid-$500,000s. Last week, Austin attorney Zach Wolfe filed a lawsuit on behalf of 35 residents in state District Court in Travis County, listing numerous concerns that residents say have been ongoing for months. Wolfe is scheduled to meet Monday with a lawyer for CWS, and he said he is "very encouraged that they are serious about resolving the issues," based on preliminary talks with a lawyer for CWS.
One of the plaintiffs is Scott Dixon Smith, who said he is blind and has been stuck in the elevator several times. "In numerous meetings with CWS over the past six to eight months, the residents have grown tired of the lack of action," he said. "Our lawsuit certainly speaks for itself." Greg Miller, vice president of investments for CWS, said the complaints in the lawsuit "have either been resolved or are in the process of being resolved." Neither he nor the CWS lawyer would elaborate. Key among the complaints are "persistent and major problems" with the two elevators, which stall or go to the wrong floors, according to the lawsuit.
During a Dec. 29 inspection, Lawrence Taylor, the state's chief elevator inspector, found 19 code violations, according to his report. They included some "significant safety code issues" that "needed to be corrected without delay." In addition to the elevators, the lawsuit cites problems including leaks, improperly installed window seals and inadequate soundproofing.
In addition to the elevator and other issues, the lawsuit says CWS is delinquent on property taxes for more than 40 unsold units. Dusty Knight, chief deputy of the tax office, said that CWS owes $151,499.35 in property taxes on the Sabine. After recently sending CWS a delinquent notice, a demand letter and a notice of possible litigation, Knight said Friday that his office next week will be "moving toward litigation unless they pay or make arrangements to pay." Knight said the company was current on other Austin properties, including two apartment complexes on East Riverside Drive that it eventually plans to replace with new condominiums and apartments.
Because CWS still owns more than half of the Sabine's units, the lawsuit said the company still controls the condominium association. Residents won't get control until 75 percent of the units are sold. Urbanspace Realtors, which had been marketing the units, pulled out. "We did pull out of the marketing the remaining units because we share the same concerns as the residents," said Kevin Burns, owner of Urbanspace. "We hope that these issues get resolved, as we are believers in this project and its potential."
The lawsuit seeks remedies for a long list of complaints. While it is pending, residents are sending their monthly assessments to a court-supervised account. The elevator inspection was prompted by complaints from residents, said David Gonzales, a manager in the compliance division of the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation. Taylor inspected the elevators in the company of Leo Willett, service manager for KONE Elevators and Escalators in San Antonio, which CWS had hired to service and maintain the elevators. Taylor's report noted that there had been no elevator inspection reports for the building filed with the department "for a number of years." Among the violations, Taylor said there was no evidence that required monthly tests of fire service were being performed. He also could not locate the required emergency evacuation procedures.
Gonzales said his division is conducting an ongoing investigation into the elevator issues. Once the investigation is completed, CWS will be required to address any deficiencies before receiving a certificate of compliance, Gonzales said. Meanwhile, he said Sabine's building management recently had an independent inspector conduct the required annual inspection. The building manager notified Gonzales' division that all violations have been addressed, although that has not yet been verified with a follow-up inspection, Gonzales said.
(edited to create paragraphs)
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