County May Sue to Delay Sale of Homes

Sonoma County has threatened to sue Japanese landlord Gensiro Kawamoto after negotiations over repairs at homes he owns and rents here collapsed.

The lawsuit, which would parallel legal action by a tenants group, would hold up the sale of as many as 149 homes while demanding that repairs be made.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Dani Jo Handell said Thursday she decided to move ahead with the suit after tenants received letters asking them to give up their right to sue in exchange for free rent. Handell sent investigators to the subdivisions Tuesday to collect the letters.

“This is just the most egregious ethical violation I’ve ever seen,” Handell said. “Here you are, you believe there are some good-faith negotiations. Then they go behind your back and they go to the subdivision in a limo to hand these letters out. They were basically giving Sonoma County the finger.”

Handell said laws forbid attorneys from distributing information known to be misleading. Tenants, she said, cannot waive all of their rights to sue.

Kawamoto went unnoticed for more than 10 years in Santa Rosa before he decided last month to sell all 149 homes and gave tenants 30 days to move. He did the same with 420 homes near Sacramento.

After sparking outrage, he offered the tenants another 90 days to move and said he was seeking an investor to buy the homes and rent them back to the tenants.