PORTLAND — - The town has been ordered to pay $14,615 to a couple who claimed in a lawsuit that the town was responsible for damages to their home because officials failed to follow its building codes.

Melissa Allen and Robert Satagaj received notice of the judgment in May.

The August 2006 lawsuit claimed that the town, Public Works Director Richard Kelsey and Stephen Giarratana, who was then building inspector, were responsible for flooding and erosion damages and other problems at their home and property at 111 Collins Hill Road. The couple bought the home and 1-acre property through a real estate agent from a builder in 2003.

The damages, the suit alleged, were caused by storm water runoff from an adjoining golf course and by inadequate or unfinished installation of wires, pipes, drains and vents. The suit claimed that the flooding and erosion problems caused safety hazards on the property and decreased its value.

The case follows a lawsuit the couple filed in 2005 against the home builder, through which they were awarded a judgment of nearly $108,000, according to court documents. Since the builder David Fugge, could not be located, the couple was granted $30,000 from the Connecticut New Home Construction Guarantee Fund. According to the state's website ( www.ct.gov), the fund is administered through the state Department of Consumer Protection to reimburse consumers who are unable to collect for loss from a registered new home builder.

http://www.courant.com/community/news/mr/hc-portland-lawsuit-0612.artjun12,0,6489514.story