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Judge delays appointing De Vaul receiver

November 8, 2011

In the latest chapter in the Sunny Acres controversy, a judge decided to give San Luis Obispo rancher Dan De Vaul another 30 days before choosing whether to appoint a receiver to oversee his clean and sober living facility.

At a hearing on Monday, San Luis Obispo Superior Court Judge Charles Crandall said he was not ready to assign a receiver to make sure De Vaul brings his 72-acre ranch into compliance with county housing and building ordinances.

Terence Cassidy, the county’s attorney, argued that De Vaul has had ample time to comply with government codes and a receiver should be appointed.

De Vaul’s attorney, John Belsher, said that the $500 an hour cost of a receiver would make the homeless facility financially unfeasible. Belsher asked the judge to consider having a mediator step in and to help both sides resolve issues.

Last month, the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors agreed to waive more than $20,000 in fees to allow De Vaul to build an 8,000-square-foot home to be used as a nonprofit sober living residence serving very low-income residents with substance abuse problems.

In August, the county evicted 15 residents from the property out of safety concerns.


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Geez, the county has bent over backwards and they still are for DeVaul. We’ve spent enough time and money on this guy, either he follow the law or he pays just like the rest of us would. For all of you that feel sorry for this guy, the first time that someone is killed out there due to some building not being up to code let their family sue you,,well they will, they will sue the county (all of us). If I have to get permits so does he. DeVaul hates the county, he is being stubborn. I wonder what he’s paying this attorney. He’s been fighting these things for so long he probably could have paid to get his shacks up to code and paid for the DISCOUNTED permit fees offered by the county by now with what he’s paid on attorneys fees.


I wasn’t mad about this before but I’m starting to get a little peeved about how many breaks this guys gotten, enough is enough. The longer this takes the more this guy is going to become a local hero when in reality that’s far from the truth. He simply a slum lord capitalizing on other peoples problems.


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I can’t believe that you just said that. It’s cold and it rains in winter and it gets down to freezing temperatures. The people who once found refuge at Devaul’s Ranch will die of exposure before they die from some code violation. I couldn’t give a rat’s a$$ about the fact he has extension cords or whatever the county’s freaking problem is. If they would just mind their own stinking business they wouldn’t have any code violations on a NOTED LIST that we could get sued. It’s his property, it’s a BIG RANCH and it’s up to his guests if they want to stay there or not. He isn’t hurting anybody or anything, you nosey NANNY.


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Oh man, twice I tried to respond and twice it wouldn’t go through. I’ll try one last time.


Cindy, you know how much attorneys fees are, DeVaul gets money from his tenants, why wouldn’t he use the money on needed improvements instead of retaining an attorney all these years?


If DeVaul really felt so bad for these people why when he knew that they had to leave didn’t he group their funds (the rent he gets from them) and get them into apartments or houses? $300.00X3 could put 3 people in a decent apartment so why hasn’t he done that if his intentions are so innocent.


I do have empathy for the homeless population. I know that you guys don’t like the govt. getting involved but IMO the county needs to get their @sses in gear and help our local homeless population.


“If they would just mind their own stinking business they wouldn’t have any code violations on a NOTED LIST that we could get sued.”


But the minute a complaint is filed it’s too late, the county has to act, they don’t have a choice.


“He isn’t hurting anybody or anything”…


That’s one opinion. I feel that he very well might be hurting those people and be putting the community in danger, not just of being sued but as I’ve mentioned, I’m not sure that he was running the place in a save manor, not just the structures but again as I’ve mentioned he shouldn’t be housing multiple sex offenders together. I would be furious if I lived next to that place knowing that there were dangerous people out there that might not be receiving the proper counseling or the help that they need and instead DeVaul might be making them worse off psychologically and financially.


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Not everybody pay’s him. The ones with SS benefits chip in and $300 a month is nothing. Who do you think pay’s the gas, electric and water bills not mention buy”s the food? Yes they grow vegetables and who buy’s the seed, fertilizer and pay’s that big water bill for that garden? They have electric heaters and that cost’s a bundle. He isn’t making money, he is covering the expenses to house and feed all these people. Who do you think pay’s for the repairs that he gets done, or purchased the little shacks they live in and who built the big kitchen and meeting room and who pay’s for those utilities? Dan DeVaul does. For cripe sakes less than half of the people have a funds to contribute to stay there.


Maybe the ones who were contributing did team up and find a place to live together but what about the others? How can they be worse off psychologically staying at Sunny Acres? Do you think living with a bunch of unsupervised drunks down by the creek is better? Dan doesn’t allow drugs or drinking and runs 12 step programs. You are being a NANNY Typo, you’re minding their business instead of your own. It’s not against the law to be poor or homeless and you’re already calling them dangerous sex offenders and criminals.


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“Yes they grow vegetables and who buy’s the seed, fertilizer and pay’s that big water bill for that garden?”


Buys the seed and fertilizer! Who cares,,, if he were to hire ranch hands or hire legitimately he would be paying at quite a bit more than he does to his residents, some have referred to it as slave labor.


“Who do you think pay’s for the repairs that he gets done,”


From what I’ve heard there weren’t very many repairs getting done.


“For cripe sakes less than half of the people have a funds to contribute to stay there”


From what I’ve heard and from what I believe to be reliable sources that’s not true, most and at times all of the residents pay. Many pay more than $300.00, $300.00 is the minimum.


“How can they be worse off psychologically staying at Sunny Acres? Do you think living with a bunch of unsupervised drunks down by the creek is better?”


I understand that living by a creek with a bunch of drunks isn’t good, I don’t like it and something needs to be done about that. But it is a fact that sex offenders living together is dangerous. When I found out that at least at one time they had something like 11 or 12 sex offenders living there I researched that issue on line and I spoke with a few experts in this field and it’s just not a good thing in fact it is dangerous.


“Dan doesn’t allow drugs or drinking and runs 12 step programs.”


You obviously haven’t been around drunks or druggies. So seeing that you haven’t I wonder if you ever watched that Dr. Drew show Celebrity Rehab? I’m sure that there was drinking and drugs going around, you can’t just snap your fingers or start a 12 step and make everything better, there is a very high failure rate with rehab programs. They are also good at hiding their drugs/alcohol and DeVaul is not qualified to run a rehab center. No doubt there was drugs and drinking going on out there without DeVaul even knowing about it.


“You are being a NANNY Typo, you’re minding their business instead of your own. It’s not against the law to be poor or homeless and you’re already calling them dangerous sex offenders and criminals.”


Cindy, I’m calling them dangerous sex offenders because many of them were, that was common knowledge, I’m not making it up. I spoke with one of the cops that dropped a few off over there and they also knew that it wasn’t a safe environment, the cops just liked knowing where they were. But this issue about the sex offenders was in the paper, it was in the Trib..


I’m sorry but for some reason that term ‘nanny’ is just so funny, it’s hard to take it serious as it’s just such a right wing buzz term and it reminds me of a goat or an old English nanny. Unlike you guys I feel that the govt. plays a very important and needed role in this country. I like the idea of having building codes so what happened in Paso during the earthquake to those two women dosn’t happen again or at least very often. I like the comfort of living in house that I know is fairly safe because of govt. requirements. I like knowing that the vehicles that I drive my kids in and the food that they eat is as safe as possible. Laws play a vital part of our lives and I have nothing wrong with that so if you want to call me a ‘nanny’ then that’s fine, it doesn’t offend me. I only wish that you’d come up with a term that doesn’t sound so funny.


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You can know (or have an idea ) a child by his/her works

An old proverb


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Christine Mullholland in drag,,LOL I’m a drag queen not the Typoqueen, that’s a good one, I’ve been called a lot things but not a drag queen. A few people that post here know that I don’t live there, I’ve mentioned where I live and there are few posters here that know me in person,,hate to burst your bubble but you’re wrong.


Gibson is doing his job, he would be negligent if he let this farce go on. DeVaul has had plenty of chances to do the right thing. Instead of attacking me personally why don’t you single out the points in my post that you disagree with and then we can have a mature debate on this.


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Typo


It is NOT Devaul’s so called crime that I am detesting.

NOR do I sympathize with nor against the homeless per se.

It is the County’s “no brainer” handling I distrust and disrespect.

WAKE UP!


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What specifically is it that you don’t like regarding the way the county handled this?


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Typo


One more old saying for the night


“Man ruleth man to his ruination!”


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Grasshopper, did you go to a Chinese restaurant for dinner tonight :)


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Typo


“Grasshopper, did you go to a Chinese restaurant for dinner tonight”


Thats cute, I like that, a third thumbs up for ya


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Typo


Its obvious anyone in a position of authority no matter who is your god


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No, but I do believe that most laws serve a good purpose. On many occasions in this forum I have come out against authority figures, there are some on the BOS that I personally don’t care for. But this is pretty black and white IMO. DeVaul must follow the law as to keep the county (you and me) from being libel and to make it fair for everyone. If they start giving some people special treatment (and too many times they do) then that is political corruption.


A few of us don’t believe that DeVaul is the upstanding citizen that you and others do. I would be really resentful and mad if he received special treatment. If I were to build a room on my home then I might demand that I don’t have to pull permits or build up to code and if they tried to then they might have a lawsuit on their hands. What’s good for DeVaul is good for everyone.


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Spent a lot of time and money on this guy? Its gonna cost us a hell of a lot more to take care of the homeless if their turned out on the streets, at least if you had any morals or a heart. I’ll lay odds the county eventually steals his property and shortly after we get see another development in the works of unaffordable homes and another “dont touch me park” like across the street.


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That’s up to DeVaul.


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Slumlord ???????


Definition (nourn)

a landlord who owns slum buildings, especially one who fails to maintain or improve the buildings and charges tenants exorbitant rents.


Will you please provide me with an example of Mr. De Vaul charging exorbitant rents. Thank you


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Read your own definition and then look at why he’s in trouble. He has failed to maintain or improve the living conditions on his ranch. He charges his tenants to live substandard and dangerous living quarters, that’s a slumlord.


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I did, and guess what, I keep stalling on the word exorbitant. Would you like a definition of that word?


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$300.00 a month to live in shacks that are substandard and in such disrepair that they can’t pass building codes, yes, I’d call that exorbitant. As I said, if three of the residents pooled their money they could live in a decent SAFE apt..


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“De Vaul’s attorney, John Belsher, said that the $500 an hour cost of a receiver would make the homeless facility financially unfeasible.”


Being a nice guy, being a good samartian is going to cost him $500 per hour!

Its better to put up the money in a referendum to remove all these County Supervisors


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I wish the gummint would just mind their own business and get out of these people’s lives. Winter is here, it’s cold, it’s wet, and the SLO justice system (“SLO justice” what an oxymoron) have displaced the Sunny Acres homeless from their safe environment. The court house deserves to have the homeless campers POOPING ON THE FRONT LAWN, they should poop by the drivers door of a couple of the judges cars while they’re at it in my opinion.


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If I win the lottery, there will be the biggest shelter money can buy on Dan’s property.


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Can’t believe you just said that. I dreamed of numbers the other day and decided to buy a lottery ticket because the last time I dreamed of numbers, I remembered them and played them on a KINO game a few day’s later. It was only 4 numbers but I won over $2000.00.


So anyway when I purchased the lottery ticket (something I never do), I wondered what I would do if I won something and I immediately thought of donating enough to DuVaul to make Sunny Acres the best Shelter anyone ever stepped foot on.


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If I won the lottery, the first thing I would do is fund the recall of all these supervisors!!!!!

And make sure they never show their face in public office ever again!!!


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I have an idea!!! Whoever organized the “Debris By The Sea (Oceano) cleanup needs to do the same for De’vauls land if he’s willing. Ah but then that would actually involve our leaders helping out somebody who helps others here in paradise.


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Terrance, go find something else to do with OUR time.


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