Talks Stall on Shifting Slope Near Peralta Pointe

Negotiations between a developer and owners of homes in imminent danger of sliding down an Orange hillside have reached an impasse, representatives of both sides said Wednesday.

Talks began in January between 396 Investment Co. and the owners of 15 homes in Peralta Pointe and Vista Royale, neighborhoods that sit at the top and bottom, respectively, of the endangered slope. In February, geologists confirmed that the hillside could collapse at any time.

The developer and the homeowners agreed to raze the 100-foot slope to protect other homes in the area, but the parties have haggled over compensation for those whose houses will be destroyed in the process.

Attorneys signed a tentative agreement Monday to pay the 10 Vista Royale homeowners a total of $4.2 million. But talks have broken down over what the developer should pay the five Peralta Pointe homeowners.

“We can’t do it by ourselves,” said Jason Grange, a spokesman for 396 Investment Co., who blamed the stalemate on intransigence among the Peralta Pointe homeowners. “We need some cooperation.”

The developer’s offer to pay four of the homeowners $4.1 million was rebuffed, Grange said, adding that an appraiser had valued the properties at $3.4 million. Talks have broken down with the fifth homeowner on the hill, he said.

Attorneys for the homeowners, however, have said that 396 Investment Co. undervalued the homes and is seeking to dodge responsibility for the problem.

City officials had been aware of geological problems on the hillside for at least two years, but many residents did not know until they began to notice cracked sidewalks and sinking earth. Experts estimated that the hillside had moved as much as 9 inches in a year.

The city of Orange ordered residents of five Peralta Pointe homes to evacuate over the weekend, citing the imminent possibility of a collapse.