The Arizona Department of Transportation has agreed to pay the Foothills Reserve homeowners association $6.5 million – more than three times it initially offered – for 13 acres of land it desperately needs to continue construction of the South Mountain Freeway.
Only the HOA can’t get its hands on that money – or start proceedings in which 591 homeowners could collect individual damages totaling anywhere from $15 million to $19 million – because one man stands in the way.
Now, the HOA has ratcheted up what has become a nasty legal fight by telling homeowner Dietmar Hanke that if he continues his court battle against ADOT, he’ll be assessed its lawyer’s fees at the rate of $520 an hour plus additional costs that could total thousands of dollars more.
