HomeMy WebLinkAbout00 - Non-Agenda Item - HandoutP� V)H / aA4K Or N
NON-U-NIA INKS
PRESENTATION TO THE CITY COUNCIL ON MARCH 28, 2023
I am referring to AD-124, the proposed under -grounding project on Balboa Island.
At the March 14 City Council meeting, I made a request to the City Council to
postpone the final date for making Pay Off amounts, along with cogent reasons for
that request. I have heard second hand reports that the City has summarily denied
that request, but no official response nor the rationale for the denial has been
received by me.
On an additional note, I am attaching herewith a letter dated March 10, 2023
addressed to the City's Director of Finance, requesting answers to some very
serious questions relating to Payoff Amounts and Total Assessments. I requested
the Financial Director's response, a week before the March 31 deadline. To date, I
have not received a response — verbal or written. Why?
There is no other way to put it but that the property owners of AD-124 are being
held at ransom by their own elected Council Members. In my personal case, I was
told that if a payment of $34,118.82 (my Pay Off Amount) is not made by March
31, 1 would have to make a payment of $37,287.91(my Total Assessment) if I
chose to make the lump sum payment after the currently scheduled meeting on
April 22 — a penalty of $3,169.09, or a little over 9% for about one month of delay.
So let me appeal to you one more time, let me appeal to your sense of decency
and fair play, to play by the rules and not the expediency of ramming a project
thru with devious schemes. Please extend the Pay Off date till after the City's
scheduled me
Thank you.
Jamshed Dast
330 Coral Avenue
Newport Beach, CA 92662
ihdastur@aol.com
March 10, 2023
City of Newport Beach
Director of Finance, C/O Revenue Division
100 Civic Center Drive
Newport Beach, CA 92660
I have received via U S Postal Service a Notice of Assessment from your office pertaining to Assessment District No.
124 (AD-124). The Notice states that March 31, 2023 is the last opportunity to pay the Assessment in full. If not
paid by this date, your letter threatens that a lien will be placed on my property for a higher aggregate amount
that will automatically become an annual assessment on my property tax bill, amortized over a period of twenty
(20) years, at an interest rate to be determined at the time of Bond sale, presumably later this year. You state that
if the bond sale were to occur in today's market, the average annual interest rate is not expected to exceed five
percent (5%). What you neglect to state is that it is more than likely to exceed 5%, several months from now.
To facilitate a decision on whether I pay in full, or over time, I request that you provide me the following
assurances, in writing, at least one week before the March 31, 2023 deadline.
1. Pursuant to the Municipal Improvement Act of 1913 (Division 12 of the California Streets and Highway
Code) the City of Newport Beach affirms that the Pay Off Amount of $34,118.82 pertaining to Assessment
No. 527 is the MAXIMUM amount I will be required to pay to the City. If for any reason whatsoever,
additional funds are needed to complete all work under AD — 124, the City of Newport Beach will provide
these funds.
2. Pursuant to the Municipal Improvement Act of 1913 (Division 12 of the California Streets and Highway
Code) the City of Newport Beach affirms that under no circumstance will I be required to pay an interest
rate greater than five percent (5%) on the Total Assessment of $37,287.91 pertaining to Assessment No.
527, if I elect to make payments over a period of 20 years.
If you are unwilling to provide the above assurances, please explain why.
I am compelled to seek guidance from the City on these points because the City's February 2023 Project Sheet
states:
Though City Staff at this time believe the project can be delivered with the funding the property owners
approved on July 27, 2021, there is a possibility additional funds may be needed. This could require a re -vote of
this district. City Staff will not know the amount needed until Phase 2 bid numbers are in hand.
My Assessment No. 527 is listed for construction under Phase 2 (which in fact is the last of 3 phases) presumably a
couple of years from now. Accordingly, it is premature to demand payment in full or place a lien on my property by
March 31, 2023 unless the City is willing to give property owners the assurances listed above. If the City is unable
or unwilling to give these assurances, the entire AD-124 project should be subject to a re -vote, NOW, before any
contracts are signed and funds are spent, thereby favoring the two earlier phases, on North Bay Front and South
Bay Front.
Sincerely
J H Dastur
330 Coral Avenue
Newport Beach, SA 92662
949-887-1938
jhdastur@aol.com