Court freezes View Talay condo project

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Bangkok Post

PROPERTY / BUILDING REGULATIONS
Wednesday April 11, 2007

Court freezes View Talay condo project

SOMPORN THAPANACHAI

The Administrative Court in Rayong has issued an injunction against View Talay Jomthien Condominium (1999) Co Ltd to temporarily halt construction of its 27- storey condominium on Jomtien Beach in Pattaya.
The case was filed by 10 owners of units in the Jomthien Complex Condotel against Pattaya City officials and the View Talay developer. They complained that city officials illegally issued a construction permit for the company to build the high-rise in an area where the height limit was 14 meters.
The plaintiffs based their case on the 1978 ministerial regulation that prohibits buildings from exceeding 14 meters in height if they are situated 200 metres or less from the sea. They also said the new building would obstruct their sea view and redirect the wind flow, negatively affecting sanitary and living conditions. The current work on View Talay has also created dust and cracks in Jomthien Complex Condotel, said the plaintiffs
Therefore, they asked the court to revoke the construction permit and temporarily suspend work until a verdict is reached.
View Talay plans to have 912 condominium units in the project, sized between 48 and 245 square meters and priced between 2.2 million and 13 million baht. The project was offered on the market 18 months ago but the construction permit was issued on Nov 28, 2006.
On Monday, the Administrative Court granted the injunction to halt construction, saying that the plaintiffs and city officials disagreed on the starting point from which to measure the building's height.
The disagreement concerns whether the mean water level or the low-tide mark are used as the base measurement point for the building site.
Richard Haines, one of plaintiffs, said the court's decision could set a standard for developers and also set a precedent for Thailand.
He said the owner of his Jomthien Complex Condotel project, which was about 220 meters from the sea, earlier planned to build a low-rise hotel on the disputed plot but later sold the land, which was finally developed by View Talay.
''Thailand is a country of laws but no one has ever challenged [inappropriate building] before. Let's stand up and let's make sure that everyone understands that there is a law in Thailand and we are protected,'' said Mr Haines.