A group of townhouse owners in the troubled Nature's Watch community in East Lake sued Pinellas County on Friday alleging building inspectors missed scores of building code violations that led to millions of dollars in water damage.

"You've got to scratch your head and wonder how they let these buildings be built," said attorney Henry Stein, who filed the suit on behalf of 72 homeowners.

Residents of the 182-unit Nature's Watch community were stunned in April 2003 when a building expert estimated it might cost $92,000 per homeowner to repair water damage that, construction experts concluded, was caused by poor construction.

An appeals court in January released residents from the grip of court-ordered repairs, but most owners are out the $28,000 they paid in construction assessments. And much repair work remains.

The lawsuit filed Friday alleges the county building department "recklessly and negligently" breached its responsibilities "by utterly failing on a continuing and inexplicable manner to comply with the code requirements during construction of (Nature's Watch)."

The suit claims the building department approved construction plans and issued certificates of occupancy despite serious construction defects.

Among those problems, the suit states: walls, floors and roofs were constructed with non-protected wood; foundation anchors were inadequately tied down; stucco was applied far below the required thickness; roof fasteners and flashing were missing; doors and windows were improperly installed; there was missing or inadequate exterior sheathing to protect the building against moisture; roofs were built at an improper pitch; balconies were made of non-pressure treated wood; and wing walls not properly capped to keep out water.

State law limits awards for each homeowner at $100,000 apiece, Stein said.

"These are people who have suffered damages because of reckless inspections, non-inspections and the issuance of certificates of occupancy that are inexcusable," Stein said. "The code violations are abundant."

County Administrator Steve Spratt declined to comment Friday, saying he had not yet seen the lawsuit. In the past, building officials have defended the inspections as adequate based on the codes at the time.

Nature's Watch was built from 1992 to 1998 by a company led by longtime developer Richard Geiger of Holiday. Its townhomes sold for $125,000 to $300,000. Over the years, water damage started to appear. Balconies became unsafe.

The homeowners association sued Geiger, and that lawsuit is pending.

"I think the builder is responsible also," Stein said. "But the county has a duty to the owners to protect their health, safety and property. The county has a duty to examine plans before issuing building permits to make sure buildings are built according to code. In this case, the county's performance was below dismal. It was awful."

Nature's Watch resident Harold Berger, one of the plaintiffs, said he hopes the suit sends a message.

"There was no oversight," said Berger, 69, a retiree who has lived in Nature's Watch for six years. "The time has come for someone to take these guys on and do something. Ultimately it will benefit everyone in the county to get the (building) department straightened out, so in the future this type of construction and violations of code, found and documented, won't occur with new properties."

Although 72 homeowners are listed as plaintiffs, a majority of the owners declined to take part.

"I'm tired of lawsuits," said B.A. Safley, a Nature's Watch resident for more than five years. "Plus, there is no guarantee of the outcome. It sounds like a long process with no guarantees."

Meanwhile, repairs at Nature's Watch have come to a standstill while the homeowners association board decides which repairs are necessary and which ones individual homeowners ought to pay for themselves. Already, about $4-million has been spent on construction experts, attorneys and repairs.