City of Los Angeles v. Hoppenyan's Inc.

SCOTT, J., pro tem. — Defendant Fidelity and Deposit Company of Maryland appeals from a judgment against it as surety on a bond which it executed to guarantee certain street work to be done by the principal, its codefendant, in subdividing a tract of land.

The principal had offered to the plaintiff city a subdivision map of the tract. Before filing the map the city required and appellant furnished a bond for $6,000 which was in part as follows: “Whereas, the City of Los Angeles, for the purpose of securing means whereby drainage which affects said street will be properly eared for, street maintenance cost to the City will be as far as possible eliminated and the public will be protected from accidents, demands that all of the streets now offered for dedication in said Tract shall be provided with a pavement having surface sloped toward the hill side, and a concrete curb on the hill side of the roadway, satisfactory to the Board of Public Works of said City. Now therefore, if the work outlined above is completed to the satisfaction of said Board of Public Works before June 1st, 1929, then the obligation of this bond shall be null and void, otherwise it shall remain in full force and effect.” The bond was executed June 2, 1927.

Two years later the work had been only partially completed, so the same defendants, as principal and surety, executed a further bond for $6,000, in part as follows: “Whereas said Hoppenyan’s Incorporated, in May, 1927, submitted for record a map of a subdivision of land known as Tract No. 9970, located in the City of Los Angeles, and on June 2d, 1927, as Principal, with said Fidelity and Deposit Company of Maryland, as Surety, executed Bond No. 2188, on file in the office of the Bureau of Engineering of said City, guaranteeing to perform work described in said bond before June 1, 1929, in a manner satisfactory to the Board of Public Works of said city; and whereas for certain justifiable reasons only a small portion of said work has been performed and said Principal has requested that the time specified in said Bond No. 2188 within which said work was to be completed be extended to June 30th, 1930; which work includes curbing and paving all of the streets in said tract in a manner satisfactory to said Board. Now therefore, if said Principal obtains from said Board, as prescribed in Ordinance No. [140579]71 of said City, a permit to construct the work described and deposits the fee and files the faithful performance bond required by said ordinance in time to complete said work before June 1, 1930, or before the end of any additional extension of time for completing the work that may be granted by said Board, then the obligation of this bond shall become null and void at the time said fee is deposited and said faithful performance bond is filed. However, in case said Principal fails to obtain such a permit in time to complete said work within the period of time allowed, the obligation of this bond shall remain in full force and effect. ’ ’