The developer of the Mountain Falls planned community near Pahrump is suing Nye County and the County Commission in a dispute over fees and taxes.
William Lyon Homes Inc. of Newport Beach, Calif., master developer of the 1,050-acre golf community, filed suit Monday in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas.
The suit charges William Lyon and other homebuilders in the community, in order to obtain building permits, have been forced to pay fees and taxes not authorized by the 2002 development agreement with the county.
The suit is over what William Lyon calls unauthorized fees and taxes related to a 2004 tax to fund schools, a 2005 impact fee ordinance and increases beginning in 2005 of completion-bond premiums.
"Defendants intentionally disrupted plaintiff’s prospective economic advantage by creating and wrongfully charging plaintiff the new taxes, fees and costs, thereby increasing the overall cost of the development," the lawsuit charges.
The suit seeks compensatory damages that aren’t specified but that are more than $1 million, as well as punitive damages.
Brian Kunzi, Nye County district attorney, said Tuesday he couldn’t comment specifically on the suit until he reviews it. But he said the county has had discussions with William Lyon about the builder’s desire for a refund of impact fees.
"They cited one Nevada Supreme Court case to support their position they were exempt from the payment of impact fees. Their reliance on this decision is badly misplaced. We believe this is a simple matter of contract construction. Obviously there is a difference of opinion as concerns the need to make development pay for the impacts caused by the growth generated by such builders," Kunzi said. "To sensationalize this matter by claiming punitive damages or intentional misconduct is unfortunate. One might ask how William Lyon Homes Inc. was damaged by the payment of impact fees as it is doubtful the costs associated with the payment of such fees were absorbed benevolently by the home builder and not passed on to the home buyers. If the court determines the impact fees should not have been collected, I would hope the home buyers would be refunded the money for any impact fees paid for their home and not to enrich unduly the home developer that created the impacts."