Shore Patrol: Villa Riviera squabbles calm down

The bitter e-mail skirmishes at the venerable Villa Riviera have subsided.
A new Villa Riviera Condominium Association board has been seated. And a settlement has been reached on a lawsuit that touched on a couple of the old issues and on a railing on the 15th floor.
The central squabble centered on a $3.9 million renovation of one of Long Beach's historic landmarks, a 1929 Gothic-style tower on the southeast corner of Ocean Boulevard and Alamitos Avenue.
Critics of the work became embroiled in conflicts that resulted in health and fire inspectors and police being called.
The project included removal of all 15 layers of the building's paint, to be replaced with about 3,000 gallons of new paint.
A low bidder, who came in with an estimate of $2 million, did not get awarded the final contract. A second round of bidding eventually resulted in a $3.9 million contract.
That was one issue in a lawsuit filed by the Marrujo family - Julie Marrujo, who owns a studio, and her parents, Gudelia and Ernest, who own a 15th-story penthouse. It was filed Sept. 20. 2007, in Los Angeles Superior Court and sought to look at the Villa Riviera association's budgeting records and block efforts to remove the railing. The recent settlement allows for the release of the documents, but the railing needs to be replaced.
The owner, Ernest Marrujo, will need to remove the railing, but the city will work with him to set up others, according to his daughter.
Also as part of the settlement, the association will pay the Marrujos' attorney fees of $300,000.
However, the family members were not awarded refunds on their assessments for the renovation work - $60,000 for Ernest Marrujo's penthouse and $30,000 for Julie Marrujo's studio.
By Joe Segura, Staff Writer-Press Telegram