Ontario-Montclair board rallies around superintendent over high pay, housing issues

The Ontario-Montclair schoolhouse committee is circling the wagons to support its superintendent successful the aftermath of disclosures astir his much than $700,000 successful compensation and his handling of the $331,000 successful housing assistance helium received arsenic an inducement to unrecorded wrong the community.

Emails and substance messages obtained done a nationalist records petition overgarment a representation of an elected committee that is deferential and fiercely loyal to its subordinate. The exchanges bespeak that Superintendent James Hammond coordinated the board’s media responses and provided talking points to the elected officials. He besides reminded them not to talk to reporters separately, arsenic the board’s argumentation is for President Elvia Rivas to service arsenic the spokesperson.

“She has already been successful interaction and is prepared to code immoderate inquiries that whitethorn beryllium submitted,” Hammond wrote successful an email to each 5 committee members.

In different email, committee subordinate Sonia Alvarado, who antecedently served arsenic Hammond’s existent property agent, joked that the superintendent should conscionable those questioning his wage “in a boxing ring.” Separately, committee subordinate Flora Martinez expressed her disappointment that the superintendent was facing backlash astatine all.

“I’m truthful atrocious you’re going done this,” she wrote successful a substance message.

Even the district’s 2 unions appeared unwilling to transverse Hammond, with some the enactment of the Ontario-Montclair Teachers Association and the California School Employees Association reaching retired to Hammond to pass him successful beforehand that a newsman had contacted their respective offices, according to an email from Hammond to the board.

Former committee member’s concerns

Former committee subordinate Samuel Crowe supported Hammond’s hiring successful 2010. But by the clip helium near successful 2018, helium said the committee was unwilling to bash “anything that would beryllium hard for Mr. Hammond to hold to.”

Crowe, who says helium chose not to tally for re-election successful portion implicit concern’s astir Hammond’s compensation and influence, alleged the superintendent’s contracts were seldom discussed earlier they were approved.

“He was arsenic overmuch arsenic person arsenic helium was a superintendent,” Crowe said successful an interrogation successful November.

The Ontario-Montclair School District gave $331,000 to Superintendent James Hammond for him to acquisition this $235,000 Ontario condominium. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

Resolution absolves superintendent

More recently, the committee connected Dec. 16 took steps to support Hammond from evident violations of a indebtedness statement helium made with the district. The trustees unanimously voted connected a solution stating that Hammond had fulfilled his obligations for a $100,000 location indebtedness and $231,000 successful main payments helium had received from the territory to assistance with a municipality location helium purchased successful 2011. At the aforesaid time, the committee approved a quitclaim deed, a ineligible papers that removed the district’s involvement successful the spot it had helped him bargain and past aboriginal wage off.

Yet, Hammond had sold the spot 4 years earlier. By each accounts, Ontario-Montclair had already mislaid each its involvement — and immoderate collateral for the indebtedness it aboriginal forgave successful afloat successful 2018 — erstwhile the spot changed hands, according to 4 antithetic attorneys consulted by the Southern California News Group. All agreed that the board’s solution appeared designed to support the territory and Hammond successful lawsuit the payments were challenged.

Hammond sold the municipality location for $389,000 successful 2017. He ne'er made immoderate payments connected the loan, which was designed to beryllium forgiven wholly if helium stayed with the territory for 10 years, but past was aboriginal reduced to 8 years. After helium sold the house, helium collected $114,000 successful payments successful 2018 and 2019 described arsenic “for the purposes of paying down the principal” remaining connected a owe and a enactment of recognition that helium took retired against the municipality house. Both would person been paid disconnected erstwhile Hammond sold the property.

Deed not recorded

The territory has been incapable to supply documents showing that Hammond formally notified the committee of the sale, arsenic required by his indebtedness agreement. He seemingly was capable to merchantability the spot without getting the district’s support oregon repaying what helium owed connected the district’s indebtedness due to the fact that Ontario-Montclair did not grounds its deed of spot with the county, nationalist records suggested. The quitclaim approved this period besides refers to the promissory enactment and a consequent amendment arsenic “unrecorded.”

A deed of spot acts arsenic information for a indebtedness by establishing the spot arsenic collateral. While the territory could person sued if Hammond defaulted, it would person had little of a precedence for repayment than others debts wherever the deed of spot was recorded, according to Joel Ruben, a existent property attorney. Banks would not supply a indebtedness without a deed successful place, helium said.

“If it was decently recorded, past the territory would person been asked to enactment successful a request (for repayment) during escrow,” Ruben said.

Documents provided successful a records petition raised questions astir however the deed was missed for truthful long. A rubric study for the spot requested by the district’s unit successful 2013 shows the deed of spot was not successful spot astatine that clip erstwhile it should person been. That aforesaid year, the committee agreed to an amendment to the indebtedness statement that would spot its deed of spot down Hammond’s owe and a caller $46,000 enactment of recognition opened against the property.

Mum connected transaction history

Yet, a transaction past obtained from region records successful November 2021 shows the territory did not grounds the deed past oregon successful the years since.

Hammond and his existent property cause should person go alert of the unrecorded deed erstwhile helium attempted to merchantability the spot and it did not amusement up arsenic an encumbrance. At the Dec. 16 meeting, Hammond declined to reply questions successful idiosyncratic and asked a newsman to email him instead. He did not respond to the consequent emails. President Rivas, the board’s spokesperson, besides did not respond to requests for comment.

Alvarado, 1 of the committee members who voted successful enactment of the solution and quitclaim deed, served arsenic the existent property agent connected the merchantability anterior to joining the Board of Trustees. She besides did not respond to a petition for comment.

‘Nobody followed up’

Crowe, who voted for the archetypal location indebtedness but against the main payments aboriginal on, said the board’s intent successful 2011 was for the deed to beryllium recorded arsenic information for the loan, but that it was primitively delayed due to the fact that the district’s indebtedness was provided months earlier Hammond officially took possession of the property. He recalled seeing a transcript of the incomplete deed of trust, but said helium didn’t cognize wherefore the territory ne'er submitted it to the region aft the merchantability concluded.

“Probably cipher followed up connected it,” Crowe said. “I conscionable assumed it was taken attraction of.”

Crowe alleges it would person been Hammond’s work to grounds the deed of spot connected the board’s behalf.

The Ontario-Montclair School District gave $331,000 to Superintendent James Hammond for him to acquisition a $235,000 Ontario condominium. He aboriginal sold it for $389,000 and purchased this Ontario location with a existent worth of implicit $1.1 million, according to zillow.com. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

The Dec. 16 solution approved by the committee states that Hammond’s merchantability of the spot and his consequent determination to a larger location successful the territory were “common knowledge” and that by agreeing to an unrelated amendment that extended his declaration successful 2018, the committee was efficaciously approving of his merchantability of the spot a twelvemonth earlier.

“This Amendment #5 excluded each anterior discussions and each extrinsic grounds which meant that the alteration of household and underlying promissory enactment and archetypal and 2nd deeds were acknowledged and the structured compensation to guarantee Dr. Hammond continued to unrecorded successful the territory portion helium served arsenic superintendent were achieved,” the approved solution states.

The archetypal indebtedness statement states that Hammond was not permitted to instrumentality retired further loans oregon merchantability the spot without archetypal notifying the board. The solution argues that Hammond’s payments were to incentivize him surviving successful the territory and that it did not substance that helium moved to a antithetic home.

“The district’s fiscal involvement was not to unafraid involvement successful existent property — its involvement was to unafraid what fewer schoolhouse districts ever achieve, a long-serving superintendent who is bound to the assemblage helium serves,” the solution states.

The connection successful Hammond’s declaration successful 2015 seems to contradict the board’s resolution, too. It states the payments were “for the purposes of paying down the principal” connected related debts tied to the circumstantial property. It besides states that the presumption would beryllium “securitized against the property,” which would person required the deed of spot to beryllium recorded.

The solution was recommended to the committee by Hammond. There was nary treatment oregon unit study astatine the gathering anterior to the unanimous vote.

Crowe, the erstwhile committee member, scoffed astatine the thought that Hammond’s determination was wide known. He said helium learned of it aft Hammond had sold the municipality location already, though not from the superintendent, but from different employee.

“I surely wasn’t alert of it,” Crowe said. “In fact, I was surprised.”

Crowe believes committee members astatine the clip would not person contested the merchantability and would person worked retired an statement successful the superintendent’s favour if they had been notified. But that didn’t happen.

“They didn’t bash anything,” helium said.