People Ex Rel. City of South San Francisco v. Vasquez

THE COURT.

This is an appeal from a judgment ordering ■the abatement as a public nuisance of a building owned and operated by appellant and consisting of a group of apartments used for human habitation. It is contended that the evidence does not support the finding that said building was a public nuisance, that respondent cannot complain of defects for the correction of which a permission was denied, and that the retroactive application of requirements of a building code to appellant’s building which predates said code violates appellant’s vested constitutional right to own property (Cal. Const., art. 1, § 1). We have found these contentions without merit.

The evidence shows in part that the building, known as 503 Bayshore Boulevard or Airport Boulevard in the city of South San Francisco, was a dilapidated frame construction without any concrete foundation, that the floors were rotting and sagging, that the walls were from two to three inches out of plumb and were decayed and structurally unsound, that there were large cracks and holes between the window sashes and the walls, in some places big enough to put a finger through, that there were no fire stops in the attic, that the electrical circuits were inadequate and overloaded, that the wiring entered the rooms through a hole drilled in the ceiling, without any outlet boxes, that from said wire, which was too light for its purpose, not only lights but also appliances were run, there being no floor outlets; that the building stood only thirty-one inches from an adjacent frame structure, and that all these conditions caused the building to be a very serious fire hazard for its surroundings, which hazard, according to the testimony of the witness Brauns, Assistant Fire Chief, could only be eliminated by rebuilding the building. (It may be noted in this respect that Brauns testified that the decayed walls were a fire hazard, because fire would progress through them much quicker than would normally be expected.) The

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fire danger was moreover increased by the fact that the backyard was littered with old mattresses, cardboard boxes, old furniture and that at the side of the building was an open shed containing the same kind of refuse and also lumber. There was also evidence as to conditions detrimental to the health of the occupants and dangerous to the public health: infestation with rodents, earwigs and flies, insufficient sanitation facilities, (for the occupants of nine apartments there were only two toilets, one for the men, one for the women, accessible from the outside only, and only one shower located in the same room as the women’s toilet) inadequate protection against the elements because of ill-fitting doors and windows, etc. There had been repeated complaints about the building, and since 1948 repeated notices of defects had been given to defendant; nevertheless, the conditions were still as stated on the day before that of the trial, November 9,1954, except that the rodents had left when the building became unoccupied. The above evidence was uncontradicted and it was conceded by defendant’s attorney that the charges were true. There is then no doubt that the building, as a public fire and health hazard, was a public nuisance subject to abatement, irrespective of whether or not it violated any applicable building code or ordinance.