Howells

The city council of San Diego, in the year 1907, initiated proceedings under the Vrooman Act to have performed the work of grading certain portions of Tide Street. The work was completed, but within the time allowed by statute certain property owners made appeal to the city council, objecting to the assessment levied as being excessive, and also upon the ground that the work had not been performed according to the specifications of the contract. The property owners so objecting did not constitute all of the property owners who were affected by the assessment. Thereafter the city clerk mailed a notice to the agent who represented the objecting property owners, which notice set forth the day when hearing would be had upon the appeal so taken. The hearing came on before the city council, when the appealing property owners were heard through .their agent and attorney, and the council made an order in the form of a resolution denying the appeal and affirming the assessment. Thereafter this action was commenced by the contractor to recover the amount assessed against defendants’ property on account of the street improvement work performed by it. The defendant Howells was one of the…