Both sides close to reaching settlement in Horizon Condo case, says attorney

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and Faith Rae

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WAUKESHA — An attorney representing the city of Waukesha believes all parties in the Horizon West Condo case are close to reaching a settlement regarding the request for an order to tear down the building. Attorney Miles Eastman made the comment during a court hearing on Wednesday. A status conference is scheduled for June 26, according to online court records.

Last October, the city went to the county circuit court, asking a judge to issue a ruling enforcing a raze order the city put on the West Avenue property in early 2022.

The condo residents were suddenly evacuated from their homes in the 49unit, six-story building on Dec. 2, 2021, under an order by the city. According to the complaint in a federal lawsuit, sometime before June 5, 2020, members of the Horizon West Condominium

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Homes Association noticed instability in the building’s balconies, some of which were later removed by engineers and contractors. They later found structural steel had rusted in the balconies and in the beams supporting the building. Engineers concluded water of unknown origin got into the building and caused significant rusting of the structural steel.

The building had been insured for up to $17 million. Last fall, U.S. District Judge Lynn Adelman sided with the building’s insurer, Travelers Indemnity Company of Connecticut, finding the losses the residents experienced were not covered by the policy in place at the time, and several exclusions to coverage applied. That ruling has been appealed.

Attorney Michael Ganzer is representing all 66 respondents in the suit including the condo homeowners association and more than five dozen residents.

After court on Wednesday, resident Joe J. Hausch said everyone wishes the entire proceedings were done and it was in their favor.

"It should have been. Everybody’s running and hiding away from it because it’s a big expenditure to the insurance companies. The back and forth, it’s extremely difficult for everybody who’s trying to make a living and pay their bills. They can’t pay their bills and still pay their mortgages. That’s the real problem," Hausch said.

Hausch added it’s not fair that the statute of limitations protects the city.

"The statute of limitations for the building involving the city, it’s not fair that they have a statute of limitations to protect them. I’m not saying anything against our city fathers of today. They didn’t write the statute of limitations, it’s not their fault. But these insurance policies and these different insurance policies that have covered insurance over that five or six decades, they’re all covered and protected by a statute of limitations also. It’s not fair," he said.

Hausch thinks the judge should throw out all those statutes of limitations and have all of the insurance companies that have covered that building over all of these decades, including the city, share the responsibility.

"The insurance companies that are covering the building to date, for them to just deny it and deny the claims, that’s wrong," he said.