Family told to scale back luxury treehouse

GRANITE BAY, Calif. - Northern California authorities are telling a Placer County couple to prune back their deluxe treehouse.

Mike and Pat Splinter's 500-square-foot treehouse features a full kitchen, a bathroom and all the plumbing. The Animal Planet cable network highlighted the structure last month in the show "Treehouse Masters." The episode featured the Splinter family making hard candy for Christmas in the treehouse kitchen.

But Placer County deputy planning director E.J. Ivaldi tells the Sacramento Bee that the family already has a full guest cottage on their property. Because of that, authorities say the treehouse's full kitchen, and mattress, must go.

"They can use it for entertaining," Ivaldi said. "What the county approved was a residential accessory structure. For the purpose of them being able to do a TV show, they were allowed to build a kitchen with the understanding that the kitchen would come out."

A noted national treehouse designer, Pete Nelson, built the Placer County masterpiece for more than $60,000. The treehouse's owners have not yet commented on the county's order.