Court cuts award in Lake Huron cottage dispute - WNEM TV 5

WORTH TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) - A federal appeals court has slashed the amount owed to a Michigan couple after their plans to renovate the Lake Huron shoreline cottage were blocked.

The Times Herald of Port Huron reports Wednesday the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals recently vacated $325,000 of the award in the case.

Sanilac County's Worth Township previously was ordered to pay George and Margaret Paeth about $600,000 plus more than $200,000 in the couple's legal fees.

In 2007, a Sanilac County judge reversed a zoning board decision involving a variance issue, clearing the way for the couple to resume work on their home.

The Paeths say within days, the township posted a stop-work order on their property, without the notice required by state law. They sued in federal court.

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