OXNARD : Attorney Says Suit Was Filed Too Late

A lawsuit against the developer of a housing subdivision built atop an abandoned oil waste dump was filed too late for a homeowner to receive damages for loss of property value, the developer’s attorney argued in court Thursday.

Lawyer Christopher P. Bisgaard, who represents Oxnard Shores Co., asked a Ventura County Superior Court judge to dismiss a suit filed by Steven Blanchard, a homewoner at the Oxnard Dunes.

But Blanchard’s lawyer told the judge his client is entitled to damages. Attorney Lawrence M. Schulner also asked the judge to reverse part of a jury’s February verdict and allow two other homeowners to seek damages in the case.

A jury in February found that the developer was negligent for selling property atop the former waste dump, but it ruled that the negligence did not damage the property values of four of five homeowners.

Blanchard was the lone homewoner awarded damages, which are to be determined by a separate jury if Judge Melinda Johnson does not dismiss his lawsuit.

Johnson said she would issue a written ruling early next week.

The case, the biggest civil matter in county history, was filed in 1987 by 175 residents of the 100-home development. All but the remaining five defendants--representing three families--accepted an undisclosed out-of-court settlement last year.

Bisgaard said any claims against the developer over the waste dump should have been filed within 10 years after the subdivision was constructed. The 1987 suit came 21 years after the fact, Bisgaard said.

In its decision, the jury found no willful misconduct or fraudulent concealment on the part of the developer, necessary conditions for the statute of limitations to be lifted, he said.

Blanchard said he does not expect a favorable ruling.

“There’s always the appeals courts, and I feel that that is where we’re headed,” he said. “What’s happening here is not right. Somebody did something wrong and, instead of giving us restitution, they are spending millions of dollars trying to fight us.”