| PLAYA DORADA/DORADO |
| Rocky Point Exposed |
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Be Careful, Be Very Careful!
History of Playa Dorada
1991 - 2008
In 1991, lots were put up for sale by the Grijalvas, the legal owners of the land. This was the first attempt by the Grijalvas to develop their
property in a development called Playa Dorado. Several Americans signed lease contracts with the Grijalvas. These leases were signed with
the promise that the lease contracts would be converted to Bank Trusts. This was done with a notario (lawyer in Rocky Point) with the
signatures of the land owners. The property was surveyed and registered in Rocky Point. Mr. Paco Meza and Omar Saenz contracted with and
built one and two story private homes and condominiums along the beach front for many American leaseholders in the development.
In September, 1997 Juan Luis Martin Reyes arrived on the scene. The Grijalvas, who were the legal owners of the property entered into a
contract with Mr. Martin (who was introduced by German and Estella Palcio) to create the corporation; Playa Norte. The Grijalvas used their
property as their investment in the new corporation (Playa Norte) and became the 49% shareholders in the corporation; the property was
placed in Trust with Bancrecer, with the Grijalvas being the primary signers. The remaining 2% was held by the Palacio’s. Mr. Martin was
named CEO of Playa Norte and held 49% in the agreement. His obligations as a partner were clear;
1. Deposit several million dollars in the Trust account to be used for installation of infrastructure in
Playa Norte including Playa Dorado. The money has never been put into the account. There is no record of any deposit.
2. His obligations included the following; construction of streets, installation of water lines and sewers and electricity in
Playa Norte. This was never done.
3. It was also his obligation to acquire all the necessary licenses and permits from the State of Sonora and the City of
Puerto Penasco for the development of Playa Norte including Playa Dorado.
He also sold Playa Dorado property to Douglas Adams. In fact the Grajalavas did not authorize the sale of the property. On December 19th
2005, the property was placed in Trust with Scotia Bank as the administrator. Mr. Martin’s company Barlovento S.A. de C.V. is the beneficiary in
the first place with Douglas Adams Company, Barlovento Estates S.de R.L. De C.V. as the beneficiary in the second place, giving them the
rights to the property.
The Playa Dorada Development Company also uses the name Barlovento Estates S. De R.L. De C.V. and are calling the development El Dorado
Estates. Doug Adams is the owner although his name does not appear on any of the Trust Documents. Mr. Raul O'Farrill is a percentage
partner of the Playa Dorada Development Company, Barlovento Estates, Gila Towers or St James Gate development LLC.
In the year 2001 the home owners of Playa Dorado were in litigation against Playa Norte to protect their investments. After 2 years they had
managed to stop the developers from continuing their development; which included threatening to bulldoze their property and swallow them
up in the overall Playa Norte development. The threatening letter came on a North Beach letterhead. Everyone on the beach got the letter at
that time. A negotiated settlement was reached. That negotiation was that the lease contracts that the Grijalvas had made with the Americans,
prior to the makeup of the North Beach Trust would be converted into Bank Trusts. In return the investors agreed to remove the litigation
against Playa Norte and the Grijalvas. Mr. Raul O’Farrill was sent to the home owners as an impartial mediator. He was also the escrow agent
for about 80% of the Bank Trusts in Playa Dorada.
A few people got their Trusts directly from Playa Norte with no middle man and these trusts do not contain any anexo's and they say that a two
story home can be built. When the owners started the trust process, they allege that Mr. O'Farrill insisted that they immediately sign off on the
litigation to have it removed, which they did. They never received an English translation of the settlement negotiated by Mr. O’Farrill, or had
any idea of its content.
When the Trusts from the bank, and title insurance from 1st American Title, were delivered to the home owners in the year 2003, they claim
that they found out that their property dimensions had been changed without their knowledge and that the Trusts contained anexos or
attachments that said beach front lot owners can only build one story houses. It was also stipulated that they join and maintain membership of
the”HOA". However it did not indicate which or who’s HOA. The owners formed the Mexican Association Civil Vencinos De Playa Dorada
thereby putting them in compliance with the Trusts. Because Mr. O'Farrill had power of attorney from all of the owners, he had signed the
trusts without disclosing the change in the property boundaries or the anexo's. The homeowners claim he stated “I’m sure that none of you
would have wanted me to stop the Trust process due to the 5 meter issue at the time”. The homeowners now claim that instead of the 30
meter depth that is stated in the original lease contracts with Grajalavas and approved by the city, according to their original land leases, their
property was now 25 meters deep. And the width of the property was tampered with as well.
Mr. Adams along with his partner Mr. O'Farrill now claimed that they were the owners of the disputed 5 meters and that walls and garages that
have been in place for 10 to 15 years and were built in agreement with the Grajalavas survey are now encroaching on their property. They
also claimed that the beach eroded and as a result the owners lost property on the street side (rear) of their lots, not the beach side. It
should be noted that each disputed parcel (5 meters by 20 meters) has an estimated value of $70,000.00.
The developers "volunteered" to take our walls down. They then offered to gift the home owners
back the 5 meters of property if they complied with the development company, which meant that they would
join their Mexican Corporation, join their HOA, abide by the developers rules, and pay them in advance a fee
of $15,000.00 for each house and condominium so that they could bring in the infrastructure such as water,
sewer and electricity.
The home owners declined this offer. They then had a meeting with Everardo Grijalva and his words to the home owners were "do not accept
anything from these people, do not sign anything and do not give them any money". The home owners claim they now can’t get a loan or sell
the property because of the encroachment which includes all forty lots in section 20.
The property is now in litigation between Grijalva vs. Martin, and other defendants. There is no litigation against the Trust held by Scotia Bank.
There is an Amparo (Lien) in place and it was served to the Municipality of Puerto Penasco and the State of Sonora by a Federal Judge in
Hermosillo. This Amparo directs the State and the city that no permits, licenses or subdivision plans will be issued and there will be no
changes to the property. This lien includes all of the North Beach property with the exception of the Section 20, lots 1-38 which is called the
old Playa Dorada. These home owners have Bank Trusts that were approved and authorized by the Grajalavas. Construction continues in
defiance of the Amparo on property held by Adams.
That is where Playa Dorada home owners are today; they feel they are in constant fear of losing their property, they claim they have no
utilities, no legal roads for access or egress and there is no State approved, authorized subdivision called Barlovento Estates. The above
information was derived from interviews with Playa Dorado homeowners.
1991 - 2008
In 1991, lots were put up for sale by the Grijalvas, the legal owners of the land. This was the first attempt by the Grijalvas to develop their
property in a development called Playa Dorado. Several Americans signed lease contracts with the Grijalvas. These leases were signed with
the promise that the lease contracts would be converted to Bank Trusts. This was done with a notario (lawyer in Rocky Point) with the
signatures of the land owners. The property was surveyed and registered in Rocky Point. Mr. Paco Meza and Omar Saenz contracted with and
built one and two story private homes and condominiums along the beach front for many American leaseholders in the development.
In September, 1997 Juan Luis Martin Reyes arrived on the scene. The Grijalvas, who were the legal owners of the property entered into a
contract with Mr. Martin (who was introduced by German and Estella Palcio) to create the corporation; Playa Norte. The Grijalvas used their
property as their investment in the new corporation (Playa Norte) and became the 49% shareholders in the corporation; the property was
placed in Trust with Bancrecer, with the Grijalvas being the primary signers. The remaining 2% was held by the Palacio’s. Mr. Martin was
named CEO of Playa Norte and held 49% in the agreement. His obligations as a partner were clear;
1. Deposit several million dollars in the Trust account to be used for installation of infrastructure in
Playa Norte including Playa Dorado. The money has never been put into the account. There is no record of any deposit.
2. His obligations included the following; construction of streets, installation of water lines and sewers and electricity in
Playa Norte. This was never done.
3. It was also his obligation to acquire all the necessary licenses and permits from the State of Sonora and the City of
Puerto Penasco for the development of Playa Norte including Playa Dorado.
He also sold Playa Dorado property to Douglas Adams. In fact the Grajalavas did not authorize the sale of the property. On December 19th
2005, the property was placed in Trust with Scotia Bank as the administrator. Mr. Martin’s company Barlovento S.A. de C.V. is the beneficiary in
the first place with Douglas Adams Company, Barlovento Estates S.de R.L. De C.V. as the beneficiary in the second place, giving them the
rights to the property.
The Playa Dorada Development Company also uses the name Barlovento Estates S. De R.L. De C.V. and are calling the development El Dorado
Estates. Doug Adams is the owner although his name does not appear on any of the Trust Documents. Mr. Raul O'Farrill is a percentage
partner of the Playa Dorada Development Company, Barlovento Estates, Gila Towers or St James Gate development LLC.
In the year 2001 the home owners of Playa Dorado were in litigation against Playa Norte to protect their investments. After 2 years they had
managed to stop the developers from continuing their development; which included threatening to bulldoze their property and swallow them
up in the overall Playa Norte development. The threatening letter came on a North Beach letterhead. Everyone on the beach got the letter at
that time. A negotiated settlement was reached. That negotiation was that the lease contracts that the Grijalvas had made with the Americans,
prior to the makeup of the North Beach Trust would be converted into Bank Trusts. In return the investors agreed to remove the litigation
against Playa Norte and the Grijalvas. Mr. Raul O’Farrill was sent to the home owners as an impartial mediator. He was also the escrow agent
for about 80% of the Bank Trusts in Playa Dorada.
A few people got their Trusts directly from Playa Norte with no middle man and these trusts do not contain any anexo's and they say that a two
story home can be built. When the owners started the trust process, they allege that Mr. O'Farrill insisted that they immediately sign off on the
litigation to have it removed, which they did. They never received an English translation of the settlement negotiated by Mr. O’Farrill, or had
any idea of its content.
When the Trusts from the bank, and title insurance from 1st American Title, were delivered to the home owners in the year 2003, they claim
that they found out that their property dimensions had been changed without their knowledge and that the Trusts contained anexos or
attachments that said beach front lot owners can only build one story houses. It was also stipulated that they join and maintain membership of
the”HOA". However it did not indicate which or who’s HOA. The owners formed the Mexican Association Civil Vencinos De Playa Dorada
thereby putting them in compliance with the Trusts. Because Mr. O'Farrill had power of attorney from all of the owners, he had signed the
trusts without disclosing the change in the property boundaries or the anexo's. The homeowners claim he stated “I’m sure that none of you
would have wanted me to stop the Trust process due to the 5 meter issue at the time”. The homeowners now claim that instead of the 30
meter depth that is stated in the original lease contracts with Grajalavas and approved by the city, according to their original land leases, their
property was now 25 meters deep. And the width of the property was tampered with as well.
Mr. Adams along with his partner Mr. O'Farrill now claimed that they were the owners of the disputed 5 meters and that walls and garages that
have been in place for 10 to 15 years and were built in agreement with the Grajalavas survey are now encroaching on their property. They
also claimed that the beach eroded and as a result the owners lost property on the street side (rear) of their lots, not the beach side. It
should be noted that each disputed parcel (5 meters by 20 meters) has an estimated value of $70,000.00.
The developers "volunteered" to take our walls down. They then offered to gift the home owners
back the 5 meters of property if they complied with the development company, which meant that they would
join their Mexican Corporation, join their HOA, abide by the developers rules, and pay them in advance a fee
of $15,000.00 for each house and condominium so that they could bring in the infrastructure such as water,
sewer and electricity.
The home owners declined this offer. They then had a meeting with Everardo Grijalva and his words to the home owners were "do not accept
anything from these people, do not sign anything and do not give them any money". The home owners claim they now can’t get a loan or sell
the property because of the encroachment which includes all forty lots in section 20.
The property is now in litigation between Grijalva vs. Martin, and other defendants. There is no litigation against the Trust held by Scotia Bank.
There is an Amparo (Lien) in place and it was served to the Municipality of Puerto Penasco and the State of Sonora by a Federal Judge in
Hermosillo. This Amparo directs the State and the city that no permits, licenses or subdivision plans will be issued and there will be no
changes to the property. This lien includes all of the North Beach property with the exception of the Section 20, lots 1-38 which is called the
old Playa Dorada. These home owners have Bank Trusts that were approved and authorized by the Grajalavas. Construction continues in
defiance of the Amparo on property held by Adams.
That is where Playa Dorada home owners are today; they feel they are in constant fear of losing their property, they claim they have no
utilities, no legal roads for access or egress and there is no State approved, authorized subdivision called Barlovento Estates. The above
information was derived from interviews with Playa Dorado homeowners.
"We were threatened with getting our house bulldozed down and the caterpillar was running, and two men were sneering at me and my wife for over an hour, which scared the hell out of us." Playa Dorado Home owner |
"The developers ' volunteered ' to take our walls down." |
| Mr. Martin as the CEO of Playa Norte, then passed this property to his own company. |
| Participants in Playa Dorada Eberardo & Reynaldo Grijalva - Land owners Juan Luis Martin Jr. & Sr.- Land owners Paco Meza and Omar Saenz - Contractors German & Estela Palacio - Land owners Raul O'Farrill - Attorney, Mediator,Partner Doug Adams - Partner |
| Visit www.rockypointexposed.com/blog to post a comment |
| The information herein has been obtained from various sources and is not guaranteed by rockypointexposed.com. Prospective investors are advised to conduct their own investigation of the information contained herein before proceeding with any real estate investment in Rocky Point (Puerto Penasco). The information contained on this site is not legal advice. While the highest standards were used in compiling this information it should not be considered legal advice and all legal questions should be handled by appropriate representation. Copyright rockypointexposed.com. All rights reserved. Web Hosting by Yahoo! |
Many American investors thought they were purchasing their dream home on the beach in a development called Playa Dorado, in Rocky Point. Little did they know they would be embroiled in a real estate fiasco that would put their homes in jeopardy. |
Visit www.rockypointexposed.com/blog to post a comment. |
An update to the Playa Dorado situation
The June 16th meeting for North Beach problems was disappointing to say the least. 30 minutes for each of the litigated developments
where people have lost millions continues the hopelessness of all the people who have losses emotionally, monetarily, etc. And most of
these people are living out the last best 10 years of their lives. We all know that depression shortens life, therefore, the promise, hopes
and dreams of Puerto Penasco has turned into a nightmare.
At this meeting, a group of people who fit into this category, were promised by Carlos Davalos, Mexican/American attorney that he could
fix a problem we had. Hopes were high,,,4 weeks later,,,no response after he said he would send us info....It was a smokescreen we
suppose.
Then we found out he was a partner with Raul O'farrill and was an attorney for Doug Adams (Playa Dorado Development) who has given us
nightmares to resolve our problem. It seemed so simple to correct a fraudulent survey by North Beach (because our original contracts
stated 20 by 30 meters and were recorded by notarios in Puerto Penasco) were changed by North Beach under the guidance of Raul
O'Farrill, Tim Gump and who else,,,we don't know..Now the nightmare begins,,,they refuse to help,,,our Mexico dream is trashed because of
these people .
When these fraudulent bank trusts were signed after paying our attorney about 240,000 dollars,,,we were told we had hours to come and
sign. Many went down with translators (because we believed to a certain degree, we could trust our leaders),,,the translators were told
there was no time for questions,,,,we need to sign because they had to process more trusts. So we signed, only to find out that Raul
O'Farrill and Tim Gump knew of the incorrect survey in which we lost property that walls, structures, homes were built on (in which the
original contracts from the Grijalvas gave us, years before North Beach showed up), decided not to correct it. We never bought from
North Beach, they shouldn't have any control over us. (Unless you signed an untranslated bank trust).
Playa Dorada used to be a vibrant, positive, community active beach, now we have bank trusts with developers conditions, "anexos",
restrictions, full of friends, great relations with Mexico people...Now we have North Beach come in and overlap our property to claim control
over the people who didn't even buy from them. We suppose, this is the price of greed. Our point is,,,don't' trust anyone,,,translate what
you sign, before you sign,,,we believed in the people who was representing us.
They don't even apologize,,,,,We have footprints on our faces.
Lastly, can you afford the HOA dues, maintenance fees, etc. that are in your conditions, requirements, anexos, etc. in your trust that you
weren't allowed to translate.? Some developments are as high as $850.00 a "month". Property taxes have gone up 400% in one year. This
doesn't include bank trust maintenance fees which vary from $350 to $550 a year. We offered a translator,,,,Our leaders turned the offer
down. Now that's something you can hang your sombrero on. If this situation doesn't change,,,Puerto Penasco will have no believers. Can
we believe that the Arizona, Sonora Commission will help,,,nothing yet, but we believe they are trying.
By a Playa Dorado homeowner - July 2008
The June 16th meeting for North Beach problems was disappointing to say the least. 30 minutes for each of the litigated developments
where people have lost millions continues the hopelessness of all the people who have losses emotionally, monetarily, etc. And most of
these people are living out the last best 10 years of their lives. We all know that depression shortens life, therefore, the promise, hopes
and dreams of Puerto Penasco has turned into a nightmare.
At this meeting, a group of people who fit into this category, were promised by Carlos Davalos, Mexican/American attorney that he could
fix a problem we had. Hopes were high,,,4 weeks later,,,no response after he said he would send us info....It was a smokescreen we
suppose.
Then we found out he was a partner with Raul O'farrill and was an attorney for Doug Adams (Playa Dorado Development) who has given us
nightmares to resolve our problem. It seemed so simple to correct a fraudulent survey by North Beach (because our original contracts
stated 20 by 30 meters and were recorded by notarios in Puerto Penasco) were changed by North Beach under the guidance of Raul
O'Farrill, Tim Gump and who else,,,we don't know..Now the nightmare begins,,,they refuse to help,,,our Mexico dream is trashed because of
these people .
When these fraudulent bank trusts were signed after paying our attorney about 240,000 dollars,,,we were told we had hours to come and
sign. Many went down with translators (because we believed to a certain degree, we could trust our leaders),,,the translators were told
there was no time for questions,,,,we need to sign because they had to process more trusts. So we signed, only to find out that Raul
O'Farrill and Tim Gump knew of the incorrect survey in which we lost property that walls, structures, homes were built on (in which the
original contracts from the Grijalvas gave us, years before North Beach showed up), decided not to correct it. We never bought from
North Beach, they shouldn't have any control over us. (Unless you signed an untranslated bank trust).
Playa Dorada used to be a vibrant, positive, community active beach, now we have bank trusts with developers conditions, "anexos",
restrictions, full of friends, great relations with Mexico people...Now we have North Beach come in and overlap our property to claim control
over the people who didn't even buy from them. We suppose, this is the price of greed. Our point is,,,don't' trust anyone,,,translate what
you sign, before you sign,,,we believed in the people who was representing us.
They don't even apologize,,,,,We have footprints on our faces.
Lastly, can you afford the HOA dues, maintenance fees, etc. that are in your conditions, requirements, anexos, etc. in your trust that you
weren't allowed to translate.? Some developments are as high as $850.00 a "month". Property taxes have gone up 400% in one year. This
doesn't include bank trust maintenance fees which vary from $350 to $550 a year. We offered a translator,,,,Our leaders turned the offer
down. Now that's something you can hang your sombrero on. If this situation doesn't change,,,Puerto Penasco will have no believers. Can
we believe that the Arizona, Sonora Commission will help,,,nothing yet, but we believe they are trying.
By a Playa Dorado homeowner - July 2008