My case is about breach of contract, misrepresentation, andfraud. Aly Haidar wanted to charge me$500 to measure the land to build a third unit. On 1/26 Aly and his wife came to my brothers house and measuredthe land. After measuring, he claimedthat we had enough land to build a three bedroom and two bathroom house (2000feet) as I proposed. He stated if I paidhim $5,000 down payment of $15,000 on that day, he would waive $500 measuringfee. He claimed that his plan would bepassed by the city. I signed thecontract with Aly to design a 2000 square feet home. On 2/2 he gave me the plan of three bedroomand two bathroom house and charged me another $5,000. He claimed that he went to the city andtalked to the city planner named Ariel and he claimed the plan would bepassed. On 2/20 he gave me the planof two bedroom and one bathroom house and charged me another $5,000. He stated that he had to make the housesmaller because we did not have enough land. Nevertheless, his second plan was not passed by the city. I received a letter from the city statingthat Alys plan did not comply with the city codes.
In March Aly, his attorney (Steven Golden), and I wentto the city to talk to the city planner who explained that we had to have 6parking lots for 3 units, they must be enclosed with garage doors, and must notbe facing the street. Then Aly statedthat we did not have enough space in that case. Aly handed me a plan with the variance. The city planner stated that the application fee for the variance wouldcost between $5000 and $7000 and theres no guarantee that I would get thepermit. The city planner stated that ifI built a 600 square feet home, he would reduce the parking lots to five fromsix. Then Aly stated he did not want todo it because he would not make money to build such a small house since thefoundation itself would cost $15,000.
Then Aly came up with an idea to build a second storyaddition on the top of the existing two units. He stated I owed him more money. On 3/31 he charged me another$5,000 in addition to $15,000 that he already charged me. I also paid the city for over $3,000 infee. During the meeting with the cityplanner, Alys attorney Mr. Steven Golden sat quietly and had no saying. I asked Mr. Golden for opinion. He told me that I should not apply for thevariance because it would cost so much money. He told me to go with Alys idea to build the second storyaddition. Alys plan for the second story addition was passed by thecity. He stated he would charge me andmy brother over $220,000 to build the second story addition. I took his plan to 6 contractors to bid forthe price. However, none of thecontractors could understand Alys plan due to lack of detail such asdemolition walls. Aly designed the planthat only he could understand it. Somecontractors stated it was not practical to build the second story on top of theexisting house that was built in 1959. Some contractors recommend demolishing the whole old unit if we wentwith Alys plan. I also took Alys first plan that he charged me $15,000 toone contractor (Ruben Campo) and he stated that the plan was a joke because ithad no foundation and it did not comply with the codes. My brother and I were not able to build the second storyaddition because other contractors could not understand the plan. Some were willing to do with it, but theywould charge a lot of money since Alys plan was not practical. Aly used irrelevant arguments such as we were not approvedfor the loan, I did not apply for the variance, I knew from the beginning thatI was aware of the variance and city codes, and I misrepresented my brother asthe owner. However, one of thesearguments was true. First, my brotherand I were approved by the loan broker James Samaniego. I signed the contract with Aly to design threebedroom and two bathroom home of 2000 square feet. I did not hire him for $15,000 to design thevariance of two bedroom and one bathroom home. He promised me on the first day that I had enough land to build a thirdunit and the plan would be passed. Mybrother gave me the permission to run the business for him due to his languagebarrier.
My wife, brother, other contractors will testify incourt. I spoke with other attorney andcontractors who stated that Aly Haidar was at fault because he was the licensedarchitect and should know about the city codes. It was not my business to know about the variance and city codes. No body hired the architect to design thevariance and it was not in my contract. My case is still pending in court.
Thank you for your times.
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