EUGENE, Ore. — A Washington state builder known for hosting the show “Treehouse Master” on Animal Planet is accused of building treehouses in Oregon without a state contractor’s license.
Pete Nelson, who is known for designing elaborate forest dwellings, is facing outstanding code violations for allegedly building a treehouse without local approval or building permits, The Register-Guard reports .
To get a contractor’s license, an applicant needs to complete training, take a test, and obtain a bond and general liability insurance.
The Oregon Construction Contractors Board said Monday that is has levied a $5,000 fine against Nelson for building a treehouse in the coastal community of Neskowin. The house is 46 feet off the ground in a Sitka spruce tree and is reached from the ground from a complex set of elevated stairways.
The agency fined Nelson $1,000 last year after he built a treehouse in Central Point without a license.
Nelson’s treehouses are known for their complexity, they function as one-room suites and single-family homes with some including electricity, function bathrooms and kitchens.
Oregon officials learned of the problematic projects from “Treehouse Masters.”
According to documents filed with the state Construction Contractors Board, a Jackson County code enforcement supervisor learned about the Central Point treehouse from an episode of the show that aired in late 2013 or early 2014.
Code enforcement supervisor Ted Zuk said the county opened a code violation complaint because he built the house without getting approval from the county’s planning department. He said Nelson is working with the county to get planning and building approval after the fact.
Then, in August, an investigator with the state contractors board found an article in the Newport newspaper previewing a Treehouse Masters episode featuring the Neskowin structure. The episode aired in September.
Documents show investigator Randall Probst knew Nelson had done unlicensed work in Central Point and found the builder still wasn’t licensed in Oregon.
Nelson had not obtained a Construction Contractors Board license as of Monday, the agency said.
Nelson paid the $1,000 fine and did not contest the $5,000 fine, agency spokeswoman Cheryl Martinis said.
Nelson was not available for comment.
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