Surrounded by residential neighborhoods and the Westridge Plaza shopping center, its the last piece of developable private property in the area, the lawsuit said. Discovery and Seeno Homes has an overall rating of 2.9 out of 5, based on over 16 reviews left anonymously by employees. What has always concerned me about this case and what continues to concern me is that as Mr. Seeno has admitted, he is the sole owner of the corporation, Gonzalez Rogers said. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if Discovery and Seeno Homes is right for you. Plans call for 277 houses and 166 townhomes in four gated neighborhoods, 40 acres of parks with pools and trails, as well as more retail development. Ayman Shahid, 39, of Danville, California, the former president of Discovery Sales Inc. (DSI), pleaded guilty in federal court in Oakland, California, to conspiracy to commit bank fraud announced U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag for the Northern District of California, Special Agent in Charge David J. Johnson of the FBIs San Francisco Division, Acting Special Agent in Charge Thomas McMahon of the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) and Special Agent in Charge Leslie DeMarco for the Federal Housing Finance Agencys Office of Inspector General (FHFA-OIG). The district is creating a large regional park on the former weapons site. CONTRA COSTA COUNTY Discovery Builders Faria project would damage the major ridgeline between east and central Contra Costa County, threaten views from throughout the region, and impact the new regional park on the Concord side of the ridge. Commission and Bonus structure designed to benefit company more than employees, leaving you underpaid. There are endangered species, threatened species in this park, but the data on them is outdated, he said. Since we have been here, our kitchen has flooded from a fridge water supply line that malfunctioned, exhaust fans sound like freight . Allowing Seeno to break the city's own application process opens the city of Concord to a potential lawsuit. According to reviews on Glassdoor, employees commonly mention the pros of working at Discovery and Seeno Homes to be coworkers, career development and the cons to be senior leadership, benefits, management. The 10 most expensive reported home sales in Hayward the week of Feb. 20, Winds shred tarp, leave historic San Jose building exposed to elements, Alameda County supervisors allow eviction moratorium to remain until end of April, Exactly what I needed: South Bay teachers move into affordable units, https://www.ebparks.org/parks/concord_hills/default.htm. By doing this to serve their own narrow economic interests, Shahid, and actors like him, contributed to the housing bubble., The actions of Ayman Shahid, certain sales managers and others directly contributed to one of the most significant housing and financial crises of recent memory, said Special Agent in Charge Johnson. The city and Seeno companies now must try to nail down financial details and create a vision for the project over the next six months. The city council ignored hundreds of letters and public comments that opposed the project. Neither of these have started yet. Judith Prieve is a reporter and editor for the Bay Area News Group who covers eastern Contra Costa County for the East Bay Times and The Mercury News. Building in the wildland urban interface would create new wildfire risks and strain the City of Pittsburgs existing firefighting services. This is a major victory for Pittsburgs hills, Save Mount Diablo Land Conservation Director Seth Adams said in a statement. Shomik Mukherjee covers Oakland, with a focus on local politics, developments and activism. NewHomeSource.com is a trademark of Builders Digital Experience, LLC and all other marks are either trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners. In its lawsuit, Lennar accused the city of systematically hindering and delaying the project to give time for the anti-development initiative to get passed and to bleed the project dry. And if an environmental report shows there shouldnt be any significant, insurmountable impacts from the project such as excessive toxic waste, the Navy expects to transfer the land to the city in about two years. Log in. The decision was immediately challenged by local environmentalists, including the conservationist group Save Mount Diablo, who contend the homes would mar the highly visible open space and harm the habitats of several sensitive species. Developer Albert Seeno III walks outside the Federal Courthouse after pleading guilty to bank fraud on behalf of his home sales company, Discovery Sales, in Oakland, Calif., on Thursday, Dec.. All content is posted anonymously by employees working at Discovery and Seeno Homes. Now discover your perfect home in a DeNova community. Save Mount Diablo is not opposed to all growth. A very important factor when buying anything is the service after the purchase. According to Shahids plea agreement that was unsealed today, DSI was created to sell new homes built by Discovery Builders Inc. (DBI), Albert D. Seeno Construction Co. Inc. (AD Seeno) and other entities affiliated with Albert Seeno III and the Seeno family. The Faria project would sit directly above the new park on a ridgeline, degrading views from surrounding areas. poor management skills, micro managing exemplified, unclear direction of the company. Councilman Edi Birsan, who vigorously defended the Seeno family at the August meeting from what he called personal attacks, said Tuesday he doesnt expect the companies history of litigation to be a factor in the naval weapons project. According to Clement, Throughout the East Bay, residents have worked hard to protect our ridges and views, and to defend our parks. We have been building quality homes since the formation of Seeno Homes by Albert D. Seeno, Sr in 1938. As part of the agreement passed Tuesday, the council wont be allowed to take political donations from employees of the development teams or their subcontractors. The U.S. Navy transferred almost 2,216 acres of the defunct weapons station to the district in 2019 to create a new regional park in partnership with the National Park Service. Ft. 1 - 2 Bed 1 - 2 Bath. Looking for a new home? All Access Digital offer for just 99 cents! Sales managers can make or break your salary potential as they will move agents around to different communities when they feel like it. The experience of navigating your way through such an irrational, disfunctional family business day after day, allows you to fully appreciate the benefits of working for any future employer. Northern California is the perfect region. The buyers were not required to possess or post any of their own money when buying a home; DSI, the builders and their affiliates provided money to buyers to make down payments. 39% of employees would recommend working at, According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Discovery and Seeno Homes employees rate their compensation and benefits as 2.6 out of 5. This wont happen again. Specifically, the line of credit could be reduced or terminated, or additional collateral would be required to secure the line of credit. According to the lawsuit, the park district did not do a sufficient level of environmental review of the regional parks potential impacts on future residents of the planned subdivision and the developers adjacent land and corporate office employees less than a mile away. Faria Land Investors, a Seeno/Discovery Builders associate, wants to build some 1,500 homes clustered in the valleys in the southwest Pittsburg hills, which overlook the former Concord Naval . Candice Nguyen reports. Who let the Seenos into Pittsburg and why havent they all been kicked out of Pittsburg and other places long ago? Shahid admitted he and others took steps to ensure information that would reflect poorly on the value of the homes was kept out of bank loan files. We will continue to pursue executives and corporations who fraudulently took advantage of the country's financial turmoil for their own corporate gain., Shahid participated in a fraudulent scheme involving over $230 million in mortgage loans, many of which ultimately defaulted, to the detriment of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the American taxpayers, said Special Agent in Charge DeMarco. We were supposed to get the loan process started and picking our upgrades for the interior this week. We are proud to support our law enforcement partners in investigating and prosecuting this case.. Discover your perfect home in a DeNova community. Dear Abby: Why do they imply my husband is a freak? IRS delays tax deadline for Bay Area, but California hasn't followed: What should you do? Find your private company bowl on Fishbowl, join the hottest conversation with your colleagues anonymously. As a result, rare habitat for special status species would be lost. Arrogant managers, unrealistic expectations & timelines. Seeno III has also been the subject of controversy. And in 2018, Seeno filed a lawsuit to halt the naval weapons station from being developed by a company that beat it and other groups to become the project's master developer. The East Bay Regional Park District adopted the Land Use Plan for the new park last year on July 7, 2020. Because Discovery Sales holds no assets as the sales arm of the Seeno company, the millions will be paid by Seeno personally and through his other business interests, attorneys said. Do not waste your time/talent on this job. Is the vulgar anti-Tesla sign on my neighbors truck illegal? The family of builders has earned a reputation for engaging in drawn-out legal battles against public agencies and environmental groups, though the companies have also fostered a strong relationship with local labor unions. Management showed FAVORTISM to a selected few which were put at the best communities and were able to double dip in commissions. Really? The biologically rich site supports sensitive wildlife species and rare plants and is in one of the most visible and most environmentally constrained areas of the county. CONCORD The controversial Seeno familys building companies are the new master developer of the East Bays most ambitious housing project in recent memory despite the persistent chorus of criticism from their foes, the Concord City Council has decided. ", "Over all the homes we looked at (believe me we have looked at many) Seeno Homes - A. D. Seeno Construction Co. was by far the perfect home for us. The city approved an agreement with Seeno that established guidelines for a permanent greenbelt buffer along the inner edges of the boundary. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. The 10 most expensive reported home sales in Hayward the week of Feb. 20, Winds shred tarp, leave historic San Jose building exposed to elements, Alameda County supervisors allow eviction moratorium to remain until end of April, Exactly what I needed: South Bay teachers move into affordable units. The project, known as Faria/Southwest Hills, was approved by the Pittsburg City Council last year despite opposition from hundreds of residents. Pac-12 media rights: Our (final) predictions for the revenue, media partners, expansion decisions and more, Denver gang member gave 14-year-old permission to open fire on woman with AR-15 after fender-bender, DA alleges, In 4 years, Lori Lightfoot went from breakout political star to divisive mayor of a Chicago beset by pandemic and crime, Florida lawmakers to consider expansion of so-called dont say gay law, Drone crashes at Disneyland after hovering over visitors heads See video, Rapper Travis Scott wanted for assaulting Manhattan club sound engineer, destroying $12K in equipment, Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. If we were to reverse course today, Im not sure how many people, given what happened to Lennar would be willing to come in and participate in a process with Concord, Guy Bjerke, the citys economic development director, said about the prospect of rejecting Seeno and rebooting the search for a master developer. The maximum penalty for conspiracy to commit bank fraud is 30 years in prison, a fine of $1 million or twice the gain or loss and restitution to be decided by the court. Copyright 2008-2023, Glassdoor, Inc. "Glassdoor" and logo are registered trademarks of Glassdoor, Inc. Seeno also previously sued the U.S. Navy to stop its transfer of nearby land to the city of Concord for eventual development of a 13,000-home community. It seems really nave and really irresponsible to think our community would be immune to these same behaviors, said Kat Hannah. Thank you Seeno for building these homes.". Is the vulgar anti-Tesla sign on my neighbors truck illegal? Management is not open to suggestions or innovation. The Sales Management is sexist and entitled. Single Family Homes and DuetsRio Vista, CA, 1,090 - 1,569 Sq. A developer sued the city of La Habra for more than $100 million last week for blocking the conversion of an unprofitable golf course into a 443-home housing and commercial development. In 2018, the companies filed a short-lived lawsuit against the U.S. Navy to stop it from transferring thousands of acres where the new housing community will eventually be built to the city. Seeno is no stranger to the project. Their suit said they are owed about $30 million by the Wingfield . Broker cooperation welcome. The company is constantly opening new communities and we are never expected to travel far to our communities. The pitch was ambitious enough to secure the councils unanimous approval last year. The City of Pittsburg prepared an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) that fell far short of CEQAs requirements. The 10 most expensive reported home sales in Hayward the week of Feb. 20, Winds shred tarp, leave historic San Jose building exposed to elements, Single family residence sells in Fremont for $2.5 million, Single family residence sells for $1.7 million in Oakland, Concord Naval Weapons Stations long-anticipated redevelopment, refusing to hire local labor for construction work, filed last year against the East Bay Regional Park District, halt it from transferring its property for any development, scrambled in recent weeks to change council members minds. Delightful climate. Enter your email address and well send you a link to reset your password. The Faria project would change the beautiful green hills forever by annexing the property to the City of Pittsburg and locating 1,650 new residences far from jobs, transit, and services. Luminescence at Liberty, 55+ Active Adult, Single Family Homes and Duets Rio Vista, CA 94571, Duet Homes and Single Family Homes Petaluma, CA 94954, Single Family Homes Walnut Creek, CA 94598. We very much appreciate owning a Seeno built home and would not hesitate to purchase another one. Dont be fooled by homebuilders fancy photos of parks and trails (and) beautiful fairy tales of good neighbor communities, the website said. Specifically, Shahid ensured the details of the incentives that were being given to specific buyers would not appear in the bank loan files because the loan-to-value ratio would not support the requested loan on the inflated sales price of the home. How exciting to be able to build your dream home from the ground up, or so we thought. Under proposed rules now under review, La Habra would be required to plan for the construction of more than 300 affordable housing units by 2030. As part of that settlement, the developers promised to build the homes back a ways from property lines so they would be less visible from the eventual parkland. They've been criticized for allegedly manipulating local politicians in their. Not once, was there any kind of staff meeting of the department. Last year, the city reached a dead end with former master developer Lennar Corp., which walked away after refusing to hire local labor for construction work. PITTSBURG A group of eight families who bought homes from Discovery Homes and its Seeno family-related affiliates have sued the builder, claiming the company's sales associates and other. This rating has been stable over the past 12 months. CONS: family owned company does not have checks and balances. Seeno III said Thursday the company has an entirely new staff, and now has more oversight. The Faria site is rugged, landslide prone, and badly suited for development, which will only be possible with massive grading. Last week, a Democratic Party of Contra Costa County committee rejected a resolution opposing Seenos selection after party members worried that taking a stance would jeopardize council members seats in future elections. Seeno III, who is the president of Discovery Sales, said he trusted his staff to run Discovery Sales while he focused his attentions on the building development side of his business, which includes A.D. Seeno Construction Co. started by his father Albert Seeno Jr., and Seeno Homes and Discovery Homes.
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