Residents demand some justice over tumbling walls

BUILDING TIPS

Tips from the state Contractors Board to avoid problems with contractors:

License

Make sure the contractor and/or subcontractor is properly licensed with the state Contractors Board. Call 486-1100.

Permits

Make sure your contractor contacts the local building department before construction begins and that he obtains the necessary building permits. Make sure that building inspectors check off on each step of the project.

Bids

Obtain at least three written bids and do not automatically accept the lowest bid.

References

Ask for references and check with previous customers.

Planning

Plan your project.

Contracts

Negotiate a clear contract, and put any and all agreements regarding the work to be done in writing.

NORTH LAS VEGAS -- Five-foot four-inch, 98-pound Liberty Barrera gave the newly constructed 6-foot-high cinder block wall a shove and it collapsed.

Rick Davis found trash stuffed inside cinder blocks of his new wall -- trash instead of cement and rebar, the metal bars used to make cement structures solid.

Barrera and Davis are among a group of neighbors in a new gated community called Alexander Station, near East Alexander Road and Revere Street, who believe they have been scammed by an unlicensed building contractor.

They say Mavae Koli built walls for them during the past six weeks that have failed to pass a building inspection and won't even stand up to a firm push.

Building Safety Inspector Terry Kozlowski has ordered the walls either torn down or brought up to standard within 30 days.

Among the deficiencies noted in her report were insufficient rebar and footings not deep enough.

Koli did not return messages left on his answering machine and cell phone.

"He's an unlicensed contractor," the state Contractors Board's public information specialist, Carolyn Potter, confirmed.

Board criminal investigator Bruce Yarborough said he is looking into the allegations made by the owners of four homes in the neighborhood but cannot discuss the case.

If the allegations against Koli prove to be true, the homeowners may have made classic mistakes in their dealing with him -- including failing to confirm that he was licensed and that he had necessary building permits.

Unlicensed building contractors in Nevada may face criminal charges after Oct. 1, when Assembly Bill 634 goes into effect.

But for now, the most the Contractors Board can do is issue a citation that might result in a $500 fine -- a slap on the wrist for a builder who may be earning thousands of dollars while operating outside the law.

"Some of them consider the fine a cost of doing business," Yarborough said.

The new law makes it a misdemeanor the first time a builder is caught without a license, Potter said. The second offense is a gross misdemeanor and the third becomes a felony that could result in a prison sentence of four years.

The homeowners say they would like nothing better than to see the responsible contractor in jail, where there is plenty of rebar in the cement walls.

None believe they will see the more than $7,000 they paid to get the fences built.

"I'm in the mindset I know I'm not going to get my money back, but I want to stop this from happening again," Barrera said.

Barrera and her husband, Thomas, paid $900 up front for the fence work -- half of the $1,800 total cost.

When Koli came to collect the rest on June 15, Barrera said, they refused to pay and called the police.

"He called (June 14) and left a message on our answering machine that his workers were demanding that we pay the rest of the money or they were going to tear down our house and our fence," Barrera said.

Koli left after the confrontation with police, Barrera said, and they haven't heard from him since.

Davis, who lives across the street from the Barreras, said he is out $1,700.

"If we can't get our money, at least I would like to see him sitting in jail," Davis said. "I know I'm not going to get my money back, though it would be great if I did, but I want to stop him from putting up another fence -- keep him from hurting children and animals."

Davis said the walls are so flimsy a strong wind could topple them, endangering children.

Michelle Douquette, a neighbor, said she was taken for $2,200. Another pair of neighbors spent $1,850, she said.

Davis said he found Koli through a newspaper ad.

Koli's business card says he has had 25 years experience in building fences and other projects, but it doesn't say he is a licensed contractor.

Davis said Koli told him he was licensed and he would get the necessary building permits to erect the wall, which Davis says he did not do.

The other homeowners, who live across the street from Davis, said Koli's work looked good on the surface.

"Koli's fence looked great," Douquette, who moved into her house a month ago, said. "He said he was licensed, but he didn't show us a license." Davis, Douquette and Barrera said Koli did not have a contract and refused to give them receipts.

"He just told us to write something up and he would sign it," Davis said.

The three homeowners wrote warranties guaranteeing the workmanship for 50 years, which Koli signed.

Whether those warranties will hold up in court if the homeowners follow through on a vow of a civil suit, only time will tell.

They have asked the Contractors Board to investigate and say then they will take the case to the district attorney's office.

The Contractors Board urges people to contact them before their problem gets that far.

"We encourage people to contact us if they have a problem with a licensed contractor or have knowledge about an unlicensed one," Potter said.

She said homeowners need to avoid unlicensed contractors and to better protect themselves against the licensed ones.

The board provides tips for homeowners to protect themselves against unscrupulous contractors.

At the top of the list is to make sure contractors and subcontractors are properly licensed.

Yarborough said there are at least two groups of people who travel the country posing as licensed contractors. One is known as the Irish Travelers from North Carolina, a group that has been as far as New Mexico and perhaps Nevada.

"They do poor quality workmanship and move on," he said.

Yarborough said another group is typically made up of Samoans, operating primarily in the Western states, including Nevada, California and Utah.

"Whether (Koli) is part of that group, I don't know. They're not as closely connected as the Irish Travelers are. They (the Irish Travelers) are a real clan," Yarborough said.

archive