For the first time in five years, National City Councilman Jerry Cano has obtained building permits for his Mary Lane home.
The permits, however, are not to make additional renovations to his home or to keep any previous work done, but an attempt to get his property back into compliance.
On March 15, The Star-News reported that Cano had five years’ worth of building code violations for non-permitted work at his Mary Lane home.
Despite being sent several Notices of Violation, the councilman was never issued any fines or penalties for those violations.
Instead, the city filed a Recordation of Notice of Code Violations against his property. A recordation is a legal document that limits a property owner’s ability to sell, refinance or construct anything until the code violations are corrected.
The city recently hired an outside law firm to investigate how Cano’s building code case was handled since residents alleged at council meetings that Cano received preferential treatment because he is an elected official.
On the same day, The Star-News reported about Cano’s building code violations, City Attorney Angil Morris-Jones sent the councilman a letter, notifying him that he had until April 3 to complete a new building permit application, pay a $118 fee for a plan check review; and submit either the previously submitted plans that were approved on Jan. 22, 2015 or submit new plans by a new designer.
Cano met all three directives, Morris-Jones said. Cano was not able to submit the previously approved plans from Jan.22, 2015 because they had already expired.
The plan check shows that Cano needed to make some changes to his submitted plans.
Charles Roe, the city’s permit technician, informed Cano in an April 16 letter that his plans needed corrections before proceeding with the permitting process. Cano was given 10-days from the April 16 letter to correct his plans and submit revised plans, which he did.
Cano made the proper corrections and obtained a building permit on April 24.
Receipts show Cano paid $189 for a plan check and plan review, the first payment Cano had made in five years.
Cano made the proper corrections and obtained a building permit on April 24
To obtain the permit, Cano paid a $1,136.16 penalty, receipts show.
The city attorney gave Cano until this week to get his property into compliance.
“As you are aware this is a code enforcement case. You are now hereby ordered to obtain a building final within 30 calendar days of permit issuance,” said Morris-Jones’ letter to Cano.
“Failure to rectify all of the building code violations as noted on your building plans/permit on or prior to May 24, 2018 will result in further action. This will include administrative citations, up to and including abatement of the building code violations at your property by a city contractor.”
The open government advocacy group San Diegans for Open Government threatened to sue Cano if he did not pay what he allegedly owes the city for building code violations, and reimburse the city independent investigation into his matter.
In response to Briggs, the city has sent him receipts of payments showed Cano’s payment in full for the costs associated with his code violations.
Briggs said the city is still turning in documents and that a decision on whether or not to sue will be made in a few weeks, after a review of all the documents.
JERRY CANO NEEDS TO RESIGN WE HAVE SUFFERED ENOUGH FROM HIS INABILITY TO PLAY BY THE RULES. WE DO NOT WANT A “BOOTLICKER” TO RON MORRISON WE WANT A COUNCILMEMBER WHO IS OPEN MINDED AND CAN MAKE DECISIONS ON THEIR OWN.