Pierce County man wants blueprints to his own home. The builder has sued to stop him
A Tehaleh homeowner needed blueprints to his house for a remodel, but the company who built the home went to court to prevent him from getting them.
Oakridge Homes filed an injunction with Pierce County Superior Court in December to prevent Michael Brandow from obtaining his house’s plans from county files. Judge James Orlando granted a preliminary injunction Friday. A review hearing is scheduled for April 8. Orlando will determine then if the injunction becomes permanent.
Developers and the county say it’s rare that action is taken to block the release of blueprints held by the county.
Oakridge Homes, which has been building homes in Pierce County for more than 35 years, said the plans include trade secrets.
“Nondisclosure of the blueprints and building plans is essential to protect the trade secrets contained therein, and to protect Oakridge from economic harm resulting from the public disclosure of these trade secrets,” the complaint said.
The injunction was filed against Pierce County, pulling in the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office to argue for the records’ release. County attorneys said in their response that Oakridge has not demonstrated a likelihood that any portion of the requested records qualify as trade secrets.
“The records at issue are copies of building plans previously evaluated and approved by Pierce County staff that were submitted to the county for purposes of issuing residential building permits in compliance with Pierce County’s Building Code,” according to the county’s response.
Brandow feels frustrated and upset. He bought the home in July 2021 with the intention to do heavy remodeling, wanting to knock down walls and push out one room. Brandow called Oakridge for the plans soon after the purchase, but the Gig Harbor company denied him.
Oakridge vice president Jeff Serven told The News Tribune the company offered to tell Brandow which walls are crucial in lieu of handing out the blueprints. He said that homeowners are usually content with that.
“We’ve never experienced this issue,” Serven said.
The Master Builders Association of Pierce County told the newspaper it’s not common that a builder provide house blueprint plans.
“This is because the blueprint plans are copyrighted and considered intellectual property of the architect. Builders are granted use rights per home they build. Those rights are not transferable,” said Bailee Wicks, the association’s director of communications.
People are free to submit a public records request for plans filed with Pierce County for permit approval. The plans are copyrighted, so the county must give the builder notice before filling the records request, county spokesperson Tara Long said. State law allows the builder to file an injunction to prevent plans from being released.
Pierce County told The News Tribune that a builder filing an injunction for house plans is “extremely rare.” The Master Builders Association of Pierce County agreed.
“It is a rare procedure that someone would attempt to get an injunction to get a public record from being obtained,” Wicks said.
Oakridge is concerned that competitors could request the building plans, which include company secrets. Serven told The News Tribune their housing plans include design instructions, like how to avoid squeaky floors.
“That’s our professional livelihood that is delineated in those plans,” he said.
Pierce County said the public has an interest in reviewing the plans and approval decisions made by county employees.
“Homeowners have an interest in reviewing their own plans to understand what materials were used and where they were placed. Building plans can affect decisions by homeowners concerning earthquake or flood insurance. Homeowners and contractors have an interest in such plans for remodeling. Homeowners have an interest in determining whether construction matches the county approved plans,” the county argued in court filings.
In January, Brandow posted on his community Facebook page, detailing steps to file for house plans. Levi Hargrove soon after also filed for a records request on his Oakridge home in Tehaleh. He and two others were added to the injunction, one of whom has since reached an agreement with Oakridge outside of court.
Hargrove wants to add another room and knock down a few walls. He doesn’t want to do major work without the blueprint for the home detailing the locations of pipes and electrical lines running behind the walls.
“We wouldn’t even dream of doing that blind,” Hargrove told The News Tribune.
He worries that Oakridge’s hesitancy to share its plans means the builder did not follow the blueprints submitted.
“They seem to be a little bit shady,” he said.
Since the injunction was filed, Brandow has been able to take photos of the blueprints filed with Pierce County by scheduling a public record inspection to review the records at a county building. He now feels the case is more important than the blueprints.
“It’s more about standing up to bullies. I feel like they’re just being the bully here,” Brandow said.
This story was originally published March 14, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
