SD Supreme Court Asked To Define "Damages" In Sioux Falls Big House Demolition

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Chris McLaughery, SDPB

The proximity of the Sapienza house, left, to the McDowell house, before the courts ordered it had to be removed.
Credit Andrew Bork, SDPB

The South Dakota Supreme Court ruled in January 2018 that an oversized house built in a Sioux Falls historic district must be torn down.

Now the high court has been asked to determine if the state-law definition of "damages," for insurance purposes, includes the cost of construction and demolition of that new house.

The question comes out of a lawsuit in U.S. Federal Court, where the homeowners are suing Liberty Mutual.

SDPB's Victoria Wicks has this ongoing story.

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Rapid City freelancer Victoria L. Wicks has been producing news for SDPB since August 2007. She Retired from this position in March 2023.