The City of Orange Beach has decided to appeal a $3.78 million verdict against the city to developer Ian Boles over what he considered an unfair delay of a certificate of occupancy for one of his new massive 16-bedroom duplexes on the Gulf in west Orange Beach.

Boles said he was damaged by losing rental income on the property by enforcing what the lawsuit called “arbitrary rules” by the Building Department he said only applied to his project.

“They wanted me to divulge what I call personal information and not keep it to myself and the contractors,” Boles said after the jury verdict in May. “They wanted me to say how much I paid. I balked at that because I didn’t want to tittle tattle on me workmen because I’d never get ‘em again, you know. There’s no way they’ve got any right to get the amounts. Not at all.”

Broken down, the jury awarded Boles $792,247 for lost rental income, $343,917 for lost holding costs, $2.4 million in lost future profits and $267,247 in consolidation loan costs.

After the regular and work council work sessions of Oct. 19, the council went into executive session to discuss pending litigation and later went back into the regular session after an earlier recess. Councilman Jeff Silvers and Jeff Boyd made a motion and a second to appeal the verdict and it passed on a 6-0 vote.

Boles said he was expecting the city to appeal.

“We knew they were going to appeal,” Boles said on Oct. 21.

Boles said he was told they city had to pay a small portion of the awarded money and insurance would cover the rest.

“It’s just the arrogance of them,” Boles said. “You know what it’s costing ‘em? It cost them 7.5 percent on the total judgment."

He also sued former Building Official Lanny Smith individually but he and Smith settled out of court. He declined to reveal the amount of the settlement.

Boles and his son Ben made an appearance at the Orange Beach Council on Aug. 17 to voice opposition to the Romar Hotel being developed next to his rental properties. Developers want to add three stories atop the parking garage for the former Romar Baptist Church and it will have 127 beds in 76 rooms. By right, a condo building containing 170 beds in 76 rooms could be constructed on the site.

“This is going to be a major detriment to our property,” Ben Boles told the council. “It’s going to be five stories where now it’s two stories as far as where our main houses are. It’s going to block out a lot of the view, a lot of the sun. We just feel like it’s wrong and it’s bringing in more than what’s currently there.”

After the first reading of the ordinance on the Romar Hotel, the council voted to suspend the rules to consider it immediately. Two readings are required for the passing of an ordinance unless the council, by unanimous consent, decides to take it up after a first reading. It was passed unanimously on a 6-0 vote to allow the hotel to proceed.