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Brunswick County says big builder in default
Brunswick County has declared one of the county's largest developers in default of development agreements and has filed attachments on the developer's bank accounts to collect $1.3 million in unpaid taxes. The county also is moving to recover $11.4 million from bonds that companies owned by or associated with developer Mark Saunders posted to complete infrastructure in parts or all of Seawatch, Ocean Isle Palms, Ocean Ridge Plantation and Ibis Bay subdivisions. If the county gets the bond money, it will use it to contract for the promised work to be done. If the money is not paid, lot owners could be stuck holding property they can neither use nor sell. Deborah Boodro, spokeswoman for The Coastal Companies, which is the umbrella organization for all of Saunders' companies, said the company didn't expect the county to declare it in default of development agreements. "It appears to have been based on some incomplete and inaccurate information," she said. Boodro said she wasn't aware that the county had also attached company bank accounts for unpaid taxes and couldn't comment on that. She said the company is financially strong, and that steps are in place to resolve the infrastructure issues. Boodro said at about 4:30 p.m. Wednesday that the company was preparing a news release on the situation, and that it should be ready for e-mail distribution by 6:30 p.m. As of 8:30 p.m., The Sun News had not received the company's statement. Boodro said much of the infrastructure for the subdivisions has been completed and is underground and not apparent visually. But county attorney Huey Marshall said developers routinely notify the county when bonded infrastructure projects are complete as it reduces the amount of the bonds and payments the companies make to keep them active. Three of the developments in question are in southwestern Brunswick County. Ocean Isle Palms is located on Four Mile Road between U.S. 17 and Ocean Isle Beach. The portion of Ocean Ridge Plantation with uncompleted infrastructure is along Old Georgetown Road between Four Mile Road and N.C. 904. Ibis Bay is located off N.C. 130 between Shallotte and Holden Beach. Seawatch is at Sunset Harbor, across the Intracoastal Waterway from Oak Island. The developments include thousands of home lots, 1.195 of which are in the areas declared in default. Assistant County attorney Jana Berg and Ken Perry, Brunswick County's tax collector, said they had both been in contact with Saunders' companies about the problems. "I'm getting complaints from home buyers," Berg characterized her communications. "What are your plans for getting these projects back on track?" Berg said she had communications with company officials about the progress on the infrastructure and about extending the deadlines of the development agreements. "In all cases, a deadline has passed," she said. "In some cases, more than one." Brunswick County requires developers to post bonds to guarantee completion of promised infrastructure in developments as a condition of filing the development plat, which allows developers to begin selling lots. The county requires the bonds because they protect investments made by individual property owners as well as the value of taxable property. Since last year's economic downturn, the county has called in other bonds on several developments along the 211 corridor. It filed suit against one of the bonding companies in April when county officials felt the payment would not be made, Berg said. Berg said all the bonds for the Saunders' developments in this situation are written by Bond Safeguard Insurance Co., an affiliate of Lexon Insurance, the company against which the county filed the suit. Perry said he had face-to-face meetings with company officials about the unpaid taxes. "Their company and the principals in their company I was instructed to deal with were fully aware of the delinquency," he said. Perry stressed that Coastal Communities and the approximately 20 associated limited liability corporations whose accounts were attached were not treated any differently than any delinquent taxpayer, whether an individual or a company. He said the county typically will not foreclose on property with delinquent taxes until they are one year past due, and he is not inclined to move any faster against Coastal Communities because of the size of the debt. "Am I letting the size of the dollar amount influence me?" Perry said he must ask himself. "That is not the oath I took." Contact Steve Jones at 910-754-9855. Copyright MyrtleBeachOnline.com and wire service sources. All Rights Reserved. http:///www.myrtlebeachonline.com
Date Posted: May 21, 2009