Winakor v. Savalle

Citations

• 343 Conn. 773

Syllabus

Pursuant to the Home Improvement Act (§ 20-419 (4)), home improvement includes, inter alia, ''the repair, replacement, remodeling, alteration . . . [or] improvement . . . to any land or building or that portion thereof which is used or designed to be used as a private residence'' but does not include ''(A) [t]he construction of a new home . . . .'' The plaintiff sought to recover damages from the defendant contractor for, inter alia, breach of contract and violations of the Home Improvement Act (§ 20-418 et seq.). The plaintiff had executed a contract with G Co. for the construction of a new house on land owned by the plaintiff. That contract permitted the plaintiff to contract for necessary site work with a separate contractor. Thereafter, the plaintiff and the defendant entered into a separate contract providing that the defendant would perform certain site work in connection with the construction of the new house, including the digging of a hole for the foundation, the installa- tion of a septic tank and footing drains, and the construction of two retaining walls and two driveways. G Co. completed its construction of the house, and the plaintiff received a certificate of occupancy. At that 774 JUNE, 2022 343 Conn. 773 Winakor v. Savalle time, however, the defendant had not completed the site work he was obligated to perform under the parties' contract. The planning and zoning commission of the town in which the plaintiff's property was located informed the plaintiff that the house would be approved for zoning compliance if certain site work was completed. The parties then entered into a second contract requiring the defendant to complete the work that was agreed on in the first contract by a certain date and at an additional cost. The plaintiff ultimately became dissatisfied with the quality and timing of the defendant's work, terminated their relationship, and hired another contractor to complete the site work and to remedy any flaws in the defendant's previous