City Sues Firm Hired for Home Rehabilitation Project

The city has filed a lawsuit against the company it hired to administer its home rehabilitation program.

Costa Mesa hired Willdan Associates in November 1994 to process applications for home improvement grants from the city. The Anaheim firm was also responsible for inspecting the completed work to ensure that it met city building codes and was done with proper permits.

In the lawsuit, filed June 19 in Orange County Superior Court, the city alleges that Willdan failed to conduct proper inspections of the houses and that it disbursed money to loan recipients even though the improvements had not been made or were done without city permits.

Dan Heil, president of Willdan, said Thursday that he stands behind the work his company has done for the city and that to his knowledge it was performed in line with the conditions set by Costa Mesa.

Heil said he was surprised to learn of Costa Mesa’s lawsuit against his company. “This is the type of work we do statewide,” he said. “This is a first.”

City Manager Allan L. Roeder said the city thinks there is evidence, however, that money was disbursed by Willdan for home improvements that were not completed or were done without proper building permits.

“We have done some checking and found that there are some violations . . . enough for the council to authorize taking legal action,” Roeder said.

He said the city has begun a thorough investigation of code compliance at all properties whose funding was authorized by Willdan. Until that is completed, he said, the city does not know how much money might have been lost.

In its lawsuit the city seeks unspecified damages.