Fairfield Connecticut Building Expert Directory

Oregon Courthouse Reopening after Four Years Repairing Defects

April 01, 2014 — Beverley BevenFlorez-CDJ STAFF
The Courthouse Square in Marion County, Oregon is due to reopen after four years and nearly $23 million of repair costs to fix structural defects, according to the Statesman Journal. The square includes a courthouse building and bus mall, and is jointly owned by the county and transit district. Two years after the Courthouse Square had been built, cracks were observed “in the building’s walls” and “paving stones on the bus mall shifted and settled.” A construction defect suit was filed in 2006. However, the situation worsened in July of 2010 when “engineers determined that the entire complex was dangerous,” according to the Statesman Journal. “Building safety officials gave Courthouse Square’s occupants 60 days to move out, forcing county and transit district operations into temporary leased space.” Now that the structural repairs have been completed, Dave Clark, project manager with Structural Preservation Systems LLC (the company awarded the repair contract), stated that the building’s structure is now stronger than most buildings. “If there’s an earthquake, come to this building,” Clark said. Read the court decision
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Digitalizing Cross-Laminated Timber Construction

August 28, 2018 — Aarni Heiskanen - AEC Business
A Finnish experimentation project has made cross-laminated timber construction more productive and creative by using digital modeling. The office of &’ [Emmi Keskisarja & Janne Teräsvirta & Company Architects Ltd] looks rather like a prototype workshop. Intriguing scale models, a 3D printer, and a small CNC machine all give clues about the architects’ current project. They’re determined to make wood construction more collaborative and creative using digital technologies and cross-laminated timber (CLT). Plenty of Room for Improvement “I’m going to present our KIRA-digi project at WDBE 2018 in September. Incidentally, our wooden installation will be on display during Helsinki Design Week,” says Keskisarja. “We want to communicate with the public, not just within our professional circles, as architects typically do. The theme of the week is trust, something that’s missing in today’s construction.” Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Aarni Heiskanen, AEC Business
Mr. Heiskanen may be contacted at aec-business@aepartners.fi

Health Officials Concerned About Lead-Tainted Dust Created by Detroit Home Demolitions

August 20, 2018 — Engineering News-Record
DETROIT (AP) — The nation's largest home-demolition program, which has torn down more than 14,000 vacant houses across Detroit , may have inadvertently created a new problem by spreading lead-contaminated dust through some of the city's many hollowed-out neighborhoods. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Engineering News-Record
ENR may be contacted at ENR.com@bnpmedia.com

Congratulations to Nicholas Rodriguez on His Promotion to Partner

November 25, 2024 — Dolores Montoya - Bremer Whyte Brown & O'Meara LLP
Bremer Whyte Brown & O’Meara, LLP is very proud to announce that Nick Rodriguez has been promoted to the position of partner with the firm! Nick has been with BWB&O since 2019 and is licensed to practice law in California and the U.S. District Courts. Nick’s practice focuses on complex construction defect matters, as well as personal injury and wrongful death claims. During his time with the firm, Nick has successfully represented numerous clients through alternative dispute resolution and has taken matters to trial where he has received favorable jury verdicts. He also supervises and manages a team of associates in the Newport Beach office. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Dolores Montoya, Bremer Whyte Brown & O'Meara LLP

CDJ’s #6 Topic of the Year: Does Colorado Need Construction Defect Legislation to Spur Affordable Home Development?

December 31, 2014 — Beverley BevenFlorez-CDJ STAFF
The question involves whether a Colorado law passed in 2005 has made it too easy for homeowners to sue developers for construction defects, allegedly causing a decline in condominium building in the state. The Construction Defect Journal became a forum for this lively debate with two prominent, Colorado, construction defect attorneys providing their views on the subject: Jesse Howard Witt, of the Witt Law Firm, published “Colorado Mayors Should Not Sacrifice Homeowners to Lure Condo Developers.” Read the full story... In response, James M. Mulligan of Snell & Wilmer, LLP presented his perspective in, “Are Construction Defect Laws Inhibiting the Development of Attached Ownership Housing in Colorado?” Read the full story... The city of Lakewood did not wait for the state, but instead passed its own ordinance, which “gives developers and builders a ‘right to repair’ defects before facing litigation and would require condominium association boards to get consent from a majority of homeowners — rather than just the majority of the board — before filing suit,” according to John Aguilar’s piece in The Denver Post. Read the full story... Read the court decision
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Commonwealth Court Holds That Award of Attorney's Fees and Penalties is Mandatory Under the Procurement Code Upon a Finding of Bad Faith

October 29, 2014 — William J. Taylor and Michael Jervis – White and Willams LLP
In a decision regarding a payment claim by a highway contractor against the City of Allentown, the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania has held that an award of attorney's fees and penalties is mandatory under the terms of the Pennsylvania Procurement Code, 62 Pa.C.S. § 3901 et seq., upon a finding of bad faith by the non-paying government agency, even though the statute only states that a court “may” award such fees and penalties. In A. Scott Enterprises, Inc. v. City of Allentown, Cmwlth. Ct. No. 2163 C.D. 2013, the plaintiff, A. Scott Enterprises, Inc. (Scott), won a contract with the City of Allentown (City) to construct a one mile roadway. Several weeks after commencing work, Scott learned that soil at the construction site was potentially contaminated with arsenic, and was instructed by the City to suspend its work. Because of the soil contamination, additional work would be required to complete the project and Scott submitted proposals for the additional work plus its suspension costs. However, the City never approved the additional work and the project was never completed. The City never paid Scott for costs incurred due to the suspension of the work and Scott filed suit to recover its losses. The jury found that the City had breached the contract with Scott and had acted in bad faith in violation of the Procurement Code, and awarded damages to Scott for its unreimbursed suspension costs. However, the trial court denied Scott’s request for an award of attorney's fees and penalty interest. Both Scott and the City appealed the final judgment to the Commonwealth Court, which reversed the trial court’s refusal to award attorney's fees and penalties. Reprinted courtesy of William J. Taylor, White and Williams LLP and Michael Jervis, White and Williams LLP Mr. Taylor may be contacted at taylorw@whiteandwilliams.com; Mr. Jervis may be contacted at jervism@whiteandwilliams.com Read the court decision
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Contractor Underpaid Workers, Pocketed the Difference

February 10, 2012 — CDJ STAFF

Property Casualty 360 reports that the owner of a construction company in California’s Bay Area has been arraigned in San Francisco Superior Court. The fifty-seven felony counts include charges of payroll theft and insurance fraud.

San Francisco District Attorney, George Gascon is quoted as saying that Doherty’s actions “hurts the honest businesses that were unable to successfully compete for these projects which the defendant was able to underbid and win as a result of this scheme.”

Frances Ann Doherty, owner of Doherty Painting & Construction has been charged with submitting false documentation as to what wages she paid her workers. It is alleged that over three years she pocketed $600,000. Additionally, she is charged with underpaying her insurer by more than $100,000 by submitting to them the fake payroll information.

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Are You Ready For 2015?

January 07, 2015 — Craig Martin- Construction Contractor Advisor Blog
Last month’s Engineering News Record Magazine contained an editorial noting the worst projects of the year. Are you prepared if you have a bad project? As the editors aptly pointed out: "By their nature, bad projects disappoint owners, incite hostility among team members, slip months and years past scheduled completions and drain finances." ENR pointed noted a few projects from 2014 that did not go well. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Craig Martin, Lamson, Dugan and Murray, LLP
Mr. Martin may be contacted at cmartin@ldmlaw.com

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