A "Flintstones" house owner in Hillsborough, California, will be allowed to keep the large metal dinosaurs, cartoon characters, and other structures in her backyard after a lawsuit in which the town accused her of violating local code was settled.
According to the settlement agreement cited by Daily Post, the town will have to pay Florence Fang $125,000. She will also have to have all new permits filed for any future backyard changes for her home approved.
Fang, who along with her family became publishers of several titles including Young China Daily News, AsianWeek, Mission Life, The Independent Newspaper Group, and the San Francisco Examiner, according to the Florence Fang Community Farm, has been locked in a legal battle with Hillsborough since 2017.
The ordeal began when a code enforcement officer first noticed the changes she made to her property, which were inspired by the cartoon series "The Flintstones." Her backyard features towering dinosaur structures, characters from the hit show, dozens of multi-colored mushrooms, a sign that says "Yabba Dabba Doo," as well as a staircase, parking strip, and other additions to the home that spans across over 10,000 square feet of her property.
At issue was that she should have obtained approval for the changes from the planning department, the initial 2019 lawsuit states.
"The property owner has constructed a large project without design review or first applying for required building permits," the town of Hillsborough wrote in a press release at the time. "The Town of Hillsborough is committed to requiring that everyone follow the same long-established and fair planning and permit procedures."
Fang, who is of Asian descent, countersued, claiming that she was being racially discriminated against. Fang’s attorney Angela Alioto argued that other residents making renovations without permits likely did not face the same sort of harassment because they were not Chinese.
"Or is it really about treating Mrs. Fang differently because of her dream and that she’s Chinese and this is Hillsborough?" Alioto said at the time.
"I just wanted my peaceful life. I’m a very, very regular, retired old lady," Fang meanwhile told The Guardian. "But of course, a little different."
The town council unanimously approved the settlement and dismissed the case earlier this year but it received no news coverage because a gag order in the lawsuit stated the parties involved would not reach out to the press. The $125,000 that Fang is receiving will go towards covering her legal costs specifically related to the backyard lawsuit, and not to her lawsuit claiming racial discrimination, which Fang has agreed to drop as part of the settlement.
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