Well, this might just be the worst mistake a developer could possibly make.
Rhode Island’s Supreme Court ruled this week that a $1.8 million oceanfront home built in Narragansett has to be removed immediately after prospective buyers discovered the house was built on someone else’s property.
How could such a mistake ever occur, you might wonder? Apparently the developer hired engineers who made an, ehm, surveying mistake, which caused the foundation to be built on property owned by the Rose Nulman Park Foundation. According to the Los Angeles Times, the developer owned the lot next door.
Developer Robert C. Lamoureux and his company Four Twenty Corp. finished building the house in Narragansett in 2011.
According to boston.com, the foundation made an agreement with the Nulman family in 2008 that “states that if the trustees allow the land to be used as anything other than a public park they must pay $1.5 million to New York Presbyterian Hospital.” In turn, the foundation refuses to sell the land to Lamoureux.
The Los Angeles Times reported that it will cost around $300,000 to move the house, but that an environmental advocacy group in the area called Save the Bayfiled a lawsuit arguing that moving the house will cause damage to the coastline. Kendra Beaver, an attorney for Save the Bay, told The Huffington Post that the group was not surprised by the court’s decision as it “was [built] on a trust property,” no less.
Though not entirely sure of the environmental impact the the removal of the house will have, Beaver told The Huffington Post that she is sure “controls will be put in place to prevent runoff” so as not to “harm the coastal wetland complex.” While a timeline has not been issued for the removal of the house, Beaver said Save the Bay will most likely be involved in the conditions of the move.
The Huffington Post left several messages with Four Twenty Corp. but has not yet heard back. The Rose Nulman Park Foundation declined to comment. It remains unclear if Lamoureux will tear down or move the home.
