Monday, November 03, 2014

Aspen Grove Condo Assoc. v. CNL Income Northstar (Cal. Ct. App. - Nov. 3, 2014)

This opinion amply reflects the central problem that California faces in the modern era:  Too much water.

Okay, so maybe not all of California has this problem.  But the condo owners at Aspen Grove have precisely such a problem.  At least after Northstar Village expanded its ski operations.  Northstar built a lot of buildings and parking lots and the like, which reduced the preexisting ability of the ground to deal with runoff from melting snow and the like.  So Northstar created a nice little pond to collect all that water -- right near the condos -- but the pond didn't work, and water intrusion on the Aspen Grove property was a fairly constant problem as a result.

Northstar tried to solve the problem, but eventually just gave up.  So Aspen Grove sued.  And won.

Justice Hoch's opinion doesn't paint Northstar in a very favorable light.  Remember that the next time you go skiing in Lake Tahoe.  And feel free to rent a condo at Aspen Grove.  It's close to the slopes.  Even closer to the runoff therefrom.