Homeowners Threaten Suit Over Fireplaces

A group of Thousand Oaks residents, claiming that local building inspectors failed to warn them 10 years ago that their home fireplaces were dangerously constructed, is threatening to take the city to court unless the homeowners are compensated for damages and repairs.

City officials already have rejected damage claims that were filed by 34 homeowners as a prerequisite to a class-action lawsuit.

But the city is attempting to negotiate a settlement with the insurance company of an Agoura Hills fireplace framer on behalf of those 34 homeowners and about 160 others who say they cannot use their prefabricated fireplaces until they are repaired.

Some residents in two 15-year-old developments in the Wildwood and Newbury Park areas of Thousand Oaks say they are being forced to spend between $250 and $3,000 to repair the prefabricated fireplaces.

The residents say the fireplaces were incorrectly framed with potentially combustible wood instead of bricks and mortar and argue that the city should have warned them of the potential danger.

The fireplaces have caused two house fires documented by the city during the last decade, the first in January, 1980, and the most recent on Oct. 29, 1989, said Barry J. Branagan, the city’s director of building and safety. Neither fire resulted in injuries, he said, but the fire last October caused $40,000 damage.

According to city records obtained by The Times, at least one city official became aware of the fireplace danger after the first fire 10 years ago. But the city did not undertake a survey and learn the scope of the problem until last spring, when a resident contacted building and safety officials.

Grant R. Brimhall, Thousand Oaks city manager, acknowledged this week that the city “dropped the ball” by not telling the residents 10 years ago about the fireplace problem. He said he expects that the number of claims--the most ever filed against the city over any single situation--will continue to mount.

City Atty. Mark Sellers said he doubts that the city can be held liable. “The law provides us with immunity,” he said. “Our building inspections are not insurance policies.”

Nevertheless, Brimhall said, the city has a moral obligation to help residents obtain funds to repair their fireplaces and has been meeting with insurance officials to find a solution.

John Giacomin, a general adjuster for Aetna Insurance Co., which represents William L. Chapman, the fireplace framer, said he hopes to settle the issue as quickly as possible.

“It’s going to be expensive,” Giacomin said. “But we want to see it resolved.”

Chapman could not be reached for comment.

Perry Angress, a resident of the Del Cerro housing tract in the Wildwood area, said if the insurance company does not settle with the residents soon, they plan to file a lawsuit against the city and Chapman. Angress said the citizens are considering suing the housing developer, the now-defunct Roger Boyar Development Co. of Encino, as well as the bank that sold the houses and the manufacturer of the prefabricated fireplaces.

Bill Lopshire, a Westlake Village attorney representing the homeowners, said the residents would have to overcome a 10-year statute of limitations to collect damages in court. Most of the houses were built between 1975 and 1978.

“It looks grim right now,” Lopshire said. But the lawyer said that if the residents could prove that the city and the contractor had known about the fireplace problems at the time, they could have some recourse.

A letter dated March 27, 1980, from Thousand Oaks’ senior building inspector to the Roger Boyar Development Co., requested a survey of all prefabricated fireplaces in the Wildwood tract where the fire had occurred.

The letter noted that the Ventura County Fire Department had traced the cause of the January, 1980, fire to the fireplace, and that a subsequent investigation by the city building department revealed improper installation of wood in the decorative frame.

Boyar said during an interview in January that after receiving the letter, his company had the fireplace manufacturer survey the tract. He said the development company was told that the fireplaces seemed fine and that the problem appeared to be an isolated case.

Angress said one of his neighbors experienced a fireplace-related fire in October, 1988. When the neighbors had their fireplace and chimney reconstructed last spring, he said, he realized that their fireplaces shared the same symptoms--particularly an unpleasant, charred smell that occurred whenever they were used.

Angress and David Kohler, also a resident of the Del Cerro development, said they have been encouraging homeowners to file claims just in case they decide to move ahead with a lawsuit. Some homeowners are seeking damages from the city as high as $50,000.