Homeowners at Al Hamra Village in Ras al Khaimah are still waiting for the court final resolution to a three-year, Dh137 million dispute with the developer after it has been adjourned several times since July.
In 2015, the gated community switched from a private amenities supplier to the Federal Electricity and Water Authority, Fewa. The dispute relates to the legality of charges issued to property owners by Al Hamra Real Estate Development.
The developer claims an upgrade fee of as much as Dh110,000 applies to each property, while home owners say they paid a connection fee when they bought their properties.
The National reported in July that homeowners were expecting a court order in the next week after the dispute had raged for three years, however, they say the case has instead been repeatedly adjourned.
Homeowners say that in the mean time, the developer has continued to open court cases against them for not paying the disputed upgrade fees, and the number of open cases has increased from 13 in July to 52.
“Against all business ethics and professionalism, Al Hamra continue to open court cases against owners who have disputed this charge. In a normal professional environment, Al Hamra would wait for the court decision and abide by it,” said an owner who is being sued by Ahred and wished to remain nameless.
The owner said that the opening of cases has caused a lot of unnecessary expenses for people, such as lawyer fees, translation, court time and travel expenses.
“One lady was forced to fly in from Thailand to fight her case,” the owner said.
“Owners have purchased in Al Hamra village to have a holiday home and ultimately a retirement home. They did not expect to be sued by Al Hamra.”
Residents said that Ahred was still responding to people who refused to pay the fees by cutting off their water supply and not issuing the no-objection letters needed to, among other things, sell their property, paint exterior walls and carry out modifications.
They said that the court case has been adjourned several times since July and they have not been given a solid reason as to why.
____________
Read more:
Water disconnections final straw for RAK community who plan to take developer to court
How a new road in the Northern Emirates is changing communities in a never-ending mission to cut traffic
About 20 houses to be fully restored by June at abandoned RAK pearling village
____________
“We are not 100 per cent sure why the court decided to adjourn, but we have been told that the appointed experts could not complete the task given to them by the judge, nor could they provide copies of the required proof and documentation,” said another homeowner, who also wished to remain anonymous.
The second owner also claimed that the developer had not been truthful with them about the circumstances of the supplier switch.
“Al Hamra Real Estate Development has always claimed that they were forced by FEWA to switchover from the private supplier to FEWA, but we recently discovered that this is untrue. We now have proof that Al Hamra requested FEWA for a connection,” said the owner.
Ahred did not respond to a request for comment, however they previously said that the matter is “now sub judice and as such it would be inappropriate for Al Hamra to comment about an ongoing court case”.
“However, we would like to state that this course of action was only taken as a last resort, and after considerable discussion with the residents,” they said.
The specs
Engine: 0.8-litre four cylinder
Power: 70bhp
Torque: 66Nm
Transmission: four-speed manual
Price: $1,075 new in 1967, now valued at $40,000
On sale: Models from 1966 to 1970
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km
MATCH INFO
Cricket World Cup League Two
Oman, UAE, Namibia
Al Amerat, Muscat
Results
Oman beat UAE by five wickets
UAE beat Namibia by eight runs
Namibia beat Oman by 52 runs
UAE beat Namibia by eight wickets
UAE v Oman - abandoned
Oman v Namibia - abandoned
If you go...
Etihad flies daily from Abu Dhabi to Zurich, with fares starting from Dh2,807 return. Frequent high speed trains between Zurich and Vienna make stops at St. Anton.
FIXTURES
Monday, January 28
Iran v Japan, Hazza bin Zayed Stadium (6pm)
Tuesday, January 29
UAEv Qatar, Mohamed Bin Zayed Stadium (6pm)
Friday, February 1
Final, Zayed Sports City Stadium (6pm)
Race card
6.30pm: Maiden (TB) Dh 82,500 (Dirt) 1.600m
7.05pm: Maiden (TB) Dh 82,500 (D) 2,000m
7.50pm: Handicap (TB) Dh 82,500 (D) 1,600m
8.15pm: The Garhoud Sprint Listed (TB) Dh 132,500 (D) 1,200m
8.50pm: The Entisar Listed (TB) Dh 132,500 (D) 2,000m
9.25pm: Conditions (TB) Dh 120,000 (D) 1,400m
The biog
Family: He is the youngest of five brothers, of whom two are dentists.
Celebrities he worked on: Fabio Canavaro, Lojain Omran, RedOne, Saber Al Rabai.
Where he works: Liberty Dental Clinic
Race results:
1. Thani Al Qemzi (UAE) Team Abu Dhabi: 46.44 min
2. Peter Morin (FRA) CTIC F1 Shenzhen China Team: 0.91sec
3. Sami Selio (FIN) Mad-Croc Baba Racing Team: 31.43sec
What is Folia?
Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal's new plant-based menu will launch at Four Seasons hotels in Dubai this November. A desire to cater to people looking for clean, healthy meals beyond green salad is what inspired Prince Khaled and American celebrity chef Matthew Kenney to create Folia. The word means "from the leaves" in Latin, and the exclusive menu offers fine plant-based cuisine across Four Seasons properties in Los Angeles, Bahrain and, soon, Dubai.
Kenney specialises in vegan cuisine and is the founder of Plant Food Wine and 20 other restaurants worldwide. "I’ve always appreciated Matthew’s work," says the Saudi royal. "He has a singular culinary talent and his approach to plant-based dining is prescient and unrivalled. I was a fan of his long before we established our professional relationship."
Folia first launched at The Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills in July 2018. It is available at the poolside Cabana Restaurant and for in-room dining across the property, as well as in its private event space. The food is vibrant and colourful, full of fresh dishes such as the hearts of palm ceviche with California fruit, vegetables and edible flowers; green hearb tacos filled with roasted squash and king oyster barbacoa; and a savoury coconut cream pie with macadamia crust.
In March 2019, the Folia menu reached Gulf shores, as it was introduced at the Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay, where it is served at the Bay View Lounge. Next, on Tuesday, November 1 – also known as World Vegan Day – it will come to the UAE, to the Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach and the Four Seasons DIFC, both properties Prince Khaled has spent "considerable time at and love".
There are also plans to take Folia to several more locations throughout the Middle East and Europe.
While health-conscious diners will be attracted to the concept, Prince Khaled is careful to stress Folia is "not meant for a specific subset of customers. It is meant for everyone who wants a culinary experience without the negative impact that eating out so often comes with."
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
