Seattle Washington Building Expert Directory

Big Data Meets Big Green: Data Centers and Carbon Removal Compete for Zero-Emission Energy

October 15, 2024 — Robert A. James, Sidney L. Fowler & Ashleigh Myers - Gravel2Gavel Construction & Real Estate Law Blog
Artificial intelligence, data centers, carbon removal and zero-emission power may sound like a winning line (plus the Free Space) on a 2024 Buzzword Bingo card. But the concepts have come into dramatic real-world tension as private and public actors seek to accommodate the digital and environmental imperatives for green energy. After years of fairly stable demand, punctuated by declines during the pandemic and economic slumps, electricity demand is projected to double by 2050. A principal cause is the rapid expansion in the power needed to energize and cool servers amid explosive growth in the number and size of data centers, crypto miners, and other point sources of computation. Data centers were 3% of U.S. demand and are projected to be up to 9% or more by 2030; AI will drive a 160% surge in data center demand by 2030. A commentator notes, “We haven’t seen [growth like] this in a generation.” Reprinted courtesy of Robert A. James, Pillsbury, Sidney L. Fowler, Pillsbury and Ashleigh Myers, Pillsbury Mr. James may be contacted at rob.james@pillsburylaw.com Mr. Fowler may be contacted at sidney.fowler@pillsburylaw.com Ms. Myers may be contacted at ashleigh.myers@pillsburylaw.com Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of

Defense Dept. IG: White House Email Stonewall Stalls Border Wall Contract Probe

December 14, 2020 — Mary B. Powers & Debra K. Rubin - Engineering News-Record
After nearly one year of work, the U.S. Defense Dept.’s Inspector General can’t finish a congressionally-ordered probe of a $400-million U.S-Mexico border wall construction award last December to contractor Fisher Sand & Gravel because agency attorneys won't allow release of requested DOD and White House e-mails related to the contract, Acting Inspector General Sean O’Donnell said in a Nov. 30 report to Congress. Reprinted courtesy of Mary B. Powers, Engineering News-Record and Debra K. Rubin, Engineering News-Record Ms. Rubin may be contacted at rubind@enr.com Read the full story... Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of

Couple Claims ADA Renovation Lead to Construction Defects

December 30, 2013 — CDJ STAFF
A couple in Mercer County, West Virginia have claimed that the renovations done to their home not only failed to meet the requested ADA standards, but lead to construction defects, as reported by The West Virginia Record. Ray and Sherry Price are suing Lamberts Construction Company of Bluefield, West Virginia, claiming breach of contract and infliction of emotional distress. The couple hired to company to construct a bathroom addition, a bedroom addition, and a new driveway. In addition to other damages, they are also seeking the cost to repair the renovations. Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of

Alleged Defective Water Pump Leads to 900K in Damages

January 13, 2014 — CDJ STAFF
A lawsuit filed by Liberty Mutual on behalf of their client, Turner Construction, alleges that defects in the installation of a water pump lead to $900,000 in costs for a building in New Jersey. They are seeking compensation from Triangle Plumbing. Law360 quotes the complaint, which states “as a result of Triangle’s failure to provide a complete, functional plumbing system at the property as required by the subcontract agreement, Triangle has breached the specific scope of work provision of the subcontract agreement.” Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of

He's the Top U.S. Mortgage Salesman. His Daughter Isn't Buying It

July 16, 2014 — Lorraine Woellert – Bloomberg
David Stevens, chief executive officer of the Mortgage Bankers Association, has spent his career lauding the merits of homeownership. One person still isn’t buying it: his daughter. Sara Stevens, 27, knows interest rates are low, rents are high and owning a home can build wealth. She also had a front-row seat to the worst real-estate slump since the Great Depression. “The world has changed,” she said. Six years since the collapse of Lehman Brothers triggered a financial meltdown, some young adults are more risk averse and view the potential upsides of status and wealth more skeptically than before the crisis, altering the homeownership calculation. It’s more than the weight of student loans, an iffy job market and tight credit -- even those who can buy are hesitant. Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Lorraine Woellert, Bloomberg
Ms. Woellert may be contacted at lwoellert@bloomberg.net

A Few Green Building Notes

April 03, 2019 — Christopher G. Hill - Construction Law Musings
This past week, the blogosphere (if that’s even the word these days) has been abuzz about green building and the value that green can add to a project. Three items in particular (among many) got my attention. The first of these was the fact that a new private sustainability rating system is ready for launch. The Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure (or ISI) is seeking public comment on its proposed envISIon. This new system (aptly dubbed Version 1.0) will go “live” in July for comment. Why mention this new system? First of all, ISI’s founding members are the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), the American Public Works Association (APWA) and the American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC). This trio gives the new program some fairly heavy weight backing. Second, while there are rating systems aside from the ever present LEED, none have taken hold in any real way to compete with LEED. I am curious to see if the envISIon system has any better luck. Finally, this shows that sustainable building is of interest to more than the USGBC and those of us that discuss LEED on a daily basis. I find this to be a great thing that could lead to more societal acceptance of sustainable practices as a standard practice rather than a goal. Hopefully such efforts will offset the other two notes that caught my eye recently. Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of The Law Office of Christopher G. Hill
Mr. Hill may be contacted at chrisghill@constructionlawva.com

Drone Use On Construction Projects

June 05, 2023 — Brent N. Mackay - ConsensusDocs
The use of drones, or small unmanned aircraft systems (“UAS”), has become common throughout the construction industry in all phases of construction, including pre-construction, progress of the work, project closeout, and maintenance. This article examines the federal regulations related to drone use, as well as considerations for construction professionals related to state and local laws, project location, and weather issues. Federal Regulations Regardless of the state in which the project is located, companies and persons operating commercial drones must observe regulations promulgated by the Federal Aviation Administration (“FAA”), which has the exclusive authority to regulate aviation safety, airspace navigation, and air traffic control. Reprinted courtesy of Brent N. Mackay, Watt, Tieder, Hoffar, & Fitzgerald, LLP (ConsensusDocs) Mr. Mackay may be contacted at bmackay@watttieder.com Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of

Don MacGregor of Bert L. Howe & Associates Awarded Silver Star Award at WCC Construction Defect Seminar

May 24, 2018 — CDJ STAFF
The staff of the Construction Defect Journal would like to extend their congratulations to Don MacGregor of Bert L. Howe & Associates, Inc., in recognition of his receipt of the Silver Star Award as “Best Expert” at the 25th Anniversary of the West Coast Casualty Construction Defect Seminar, hosted at the Disneyland Resort Hotel, in Anaheim CA. Recipients of the Silver Star Awards were nominated and voted on by their peers, colleagues, and the Construction Defect Community at large, as represented by the 25,000 members who received emails on the subject. Along with “Best Expert,” recognition was also given to the best judge, mediator, plaintiff attorney, developer attorney, subcontractor attorney, coverage counsel, and insurance claims professional. Awards were handed out last Thursday during a special ceremony at this year’s Seminar. To Don, and all the worthy awardees, congratulations again! Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of

SEATTLE WASHINGTON BUILDING EXPERT DIRECTORY AND CAPABILITIES