Poor Construction Management Costs Developers $900,000

Case Overview

This case involves four partners in Seattle who purchased a commercial property and entered into a joint operating agreement. The joint party purchased the property in question with the intention of building retail space. After the majority of the project was completed, the only remaining item to be completed was the sewer. The plaintiff partners obtained a quote from an approved construction company, but the defendant partner refused to obtain a construction loan as required in the operating agreement. The defendant partners then hired an independent company to complete the sewer construction without consulting any of the other partners. The project was never completed and as a result, the property was unable to host tenants. The defendant later obtained finances to place required funds in escrow and the parties agreed to hire a contractor. Ultimately, the project cost the partners roughly $900,000 in additional funds to complete. An expert in construction was sought to opine on the correct construction processes for sewerage systems and who is generally responsible for this.

Questions to the Construction Safety expert and their responses

Please describe your experience with construction projects.

I am a board-certified construction manager and have worked on several construction projects in a major metropolitan area. There are a lot of moving parts in this case. Given the project evolution and timeline, I am capable of discussing the budget of similar construction projects, but I will need to know a little more about the type of building to give you a more accurate estimate. I can speak to construction loans and how they are obtained.

Are you familiar with processes involving the approval of sewer connectivity or similar tasks?

I am very familiar with the processes for construction projects involving the approval of sewer connectivity by the environmental protection agency. Understanding who is responsible may be a bigger, more difficult challenge based on the potential confusion associated with the operating agreement.

About the expert

This highly qualified expert has an extensive background in construction management, design architecture, and forensic consulting. He earned his BS in architectural technology from the New York Institute of Technology and is a New York registered architect. In addition, the expert is a certified construction manager, a CCM subject area expert with the Construction Management Association of America, and a member of the American Institute of Architects. Currently, the expert serves as an adjunct professor in construction management and real estate at a large university in New York as well as the principal consultant for a construction management firm. He has served as a construction manager for numerous projects including Touro College facilities, the Fulton Street Transit Center, the World Trade Center, and Watson Wyatt Worldwide.

E-052652

Specialties:

Construction Safety