ACA exposes Ash Samadi allegedly owing nearly $1 million on Surry Hills project
The car racing property developer, Ash Samadi allegedly owes 19 tradies and businesses more than $900,000 from work on his Surry Hills residential/hotel project, Botanik.
Samadi, who races a $680,000 Audi, was exposed on last night's A Current Affair, who spotted him coming out of Bunnings Clovelly wheeling a wheel barrow needed for one of his latest projects.
Builders, carpenters, electricians, and pavers are among those who say Samadi owes them collectively a $911,200 at Surry Hills.
The liquidator's report advises that the company advised there were cost overruns on the project, "with a former director making unauthorised approval of a number of contract variations who had ignored the protocol of pre-seeking the consent to cover overruns from the Samadi Immobilier Trust."
Ash Samadi was described by the liquidator as a "shadow or de facto director."
Confronted by A Current Affair, Samadi said the alleged complaints would have to be settled in court.
Rather than head off in his Mecedes Jeep, he alighted a bus towards the Junction, albeit without an Opal card.
One business did take on the Samadi Trust in court and won a judgement for $29,000, however, the Immobillier company where Samadi was a former director has been placed into liquidation and the money owed never paid.
The Samadi Group have four projects in Surry Hills, three next door to each other on Elizabeth Street, and the other nearby on Foveaux Street.
Samadi lives in a $16.5 million home in Sydney's Point Piper, which was briefly listed for sale last year. It was passed in at $16.5 million. It was bought in his mother's name.
The Samadi Immobilier company has made loans to Samadi, with a loan from his mother totalling just over $5.55 million.
There is accordingly $5.95 million owing to creditors arising from the liquidation of the Samadi group.
The liquidator noted the complex arrangements, suggesting that as far as he was aware, there is no formal contract between the company and the owners of the Surry Hill development properties.
"Despite this the company may have a 'quantum meruit' claim against those entities. Quantum meruit is an action for payment of the reasonable value of services performed where there is no formal contract," liquidator Gavin Morton at Morton's Solvency Accountants told creditors.
Established in 1988, the Samadi group was formed as a small family business.
Designed by Brenchley Architects and Quattro Interiors, the Botanik building was listed last year for sale through Miron Solomons, Gus Moors and Matt Pontey of Colliers International with a price guide of over $25 million.
Last year the SMH reported Apartment Hotels had signed a 10-year lease in the new development at 533-535 Elizabeth Street, Surry Hills.
It comprised 22 high-end apartments comprising a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments and two ground-floor retail tenancies and a rooftop terrace area with 15-metre pool and other facilities.
The operators have also committed to spending a further $1.7 million on furniture and fit out in the newly developed building, the newspaper reported.
It is next to the apartment block where the Samadi Trust cancelled its off the plan sales to prior buyers.
Some of the apartments are currently for sale through BresicWhitney.
