Investor rebuilds without insurance payoff
On March twenty-sixth, 2008, an inferno consumed several buildings and the businesses that occupied them in the heart of Albert Street, which is considered the main thoroughfare of Belize City commerce. One of the businessmen who were hit the hardest was Umesh Mahitani, who owned the Romacs building. Mahitani immediately started to construct a new building on the heels of the fire because he expected Atlantic Insurance Company to honor his claim. But that didn’t happen, and the building has been donned with a banner that said “A Insurance You need to pay us.” A year and a half later Mahitani has put up a new banner, indicating that he is still waiting for payment. While the bills are mounting, Mahitani showed News Five the new building that is already bustling with commerce.
Jose Sanchez
“What’s the motivation behind the banners that you put up?”
Umesh Mahitani, Businessman
“Hopefully, to prompt the insurers to pay. We have done nothing wrong and we maintain that from day one. We have done nothing wrong.”
Jose Sanchez
“That’s Atlantic?”
Umesh Mahitani
“Yap. The fire was twenty-sixth of March 2008 so it’s been about a year and a half.”
Jose Sanchez
“So you lost everything with that fire.”
Umesh Mahitani
“That time yes, we lost everything.”
Jose Sanchez
“You were assuming that you would be able to collect from the insurance.”
Umesh Mahitani
“I’m sure I will collect.”
Jose Sanchez
But a year and a half later have you collected?”
Umesh Mahitani
“No, we haven’t collected.”
Jose Sanchez
“In addition to putting up banners—this is the second banner you’ve put up—what else have you been doing trying to get the company to pay. What are they saying?”
Umesh Mahitani
“The matter is at court so I cant really speak much about that.”
Jose Sanchez
“So how were you able to rebuild?”
Umesh Mahitani
“Borrow money from the banks. The banks have confidence in me so I am able to build.”
Jose Sanchez
“The cost you are at right now with this structure?”
Umesh Mahitani
“I haven’t tabulated everything because we haven’t finished the second and third floors yet so I haven’t been able to put a number on the figure.”
Jose Sanchez
“But it’s substantial.”
Umesh Mahitani
“You can look at it as you can tell. We owe a lot.”
Jose Sanchez
“With the rebuilding and getting—any of the old businesses have come back into the new building?”
Umesh Mahitani
“A few of them have expressed interest. I think one or two are back in here that were in here before.”
Naim El Amin, Businessman
“The business that we had was in the Odette’s building. We had a nice store out there, a CD Plus Entertainment Albert Street and that was lost in the fire.”
Jose Sanchez
“And with the fire, what happened? Did you lose everything?”
Naim El Amin
“Yes, it was basically ninety-five percent loss. Most of our inventory was lost in the fire.”
Jose Sanchez
“Now, coming back into this new building, what is it like?”
Naim El Amin
“Well, I can’t really answer that yet cause we just opened back on the fifteenth. So we noh sure because the economy changed wah lot since we were out here last time. We had a real slow down so we come out here. We’re confident that there is business out here because Albert Street has its own set of customers. And we’ll see how business turn out within the next couple months.”
Jose Sanchez
“But so far so good.”
Naim El Amin
“Yes, we feel confident that people will patronize us as they did in the past.”
Jose Sanchez
“How many different stalls or potential stalls do you have that need to be filled?”
Umesh Mahitani
“All of them are filled. So it gives us a confidence boost when we have opened the doors and everybody, lots of people came out and rented spaces so it’s a good confidence for us there noh.”
Mahitani says that he hasn’t decided yet on what would be placed on the other floors that are still under construction.
