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Judge Says City Knew Of Riverfront Defects As Early As May 2005
But Waited Almost 4 Years To File Suit
posted March 11, 2011
Circuit Court Judge Jackie Bolton said the city of Chattanooga knew about problems at the 21st Century Waterfront as early as May 2005, but waited almost four years to file suit.
She said all parties in the lawsuit agree that the applicable statute of limitations is three years on construction defects.
Judge Bolton this week dismissed the lawsuit against the RiverCity Company, Continental Construction, Hargreaves and Associates and others involved in the $120 million project.
The city has already spent $1.5 million to fix major problems at The Passage portion of the waterfront attraction.
There are also expensive problems awaiting at the "hard edge" portion of the waterfront. The city is facing a $610,000 cause for a study on the first phase of the corrective work.
Judge Bolton said Lee Norris, deputy public works administrator, noticed problems in early May 2005. She said an employee of the project manager, RiverCity, said at the end of July 2005 that the project was "falling apart."
She said in the opinion dismissing the case, "As the project proceeded, problems arose. These problems were repeatedly documented and noted to the parties involved. The problems were so apparent that even an individual who is not a construction expert, Lee Norris, took notice of several defects and relayed these problems via email on May 2, 2005, to the appropriate parties.
"Despite the problems, the Certificate of Substantial Completion was issued on June 1, 2005. After the Substantial Completion date, similar problems continued as evidenced by an email sent slightly over a month later, on July 29, 2005. An email was sent from an employee of River City, and in the words of the employee, the email was a 'call for help' because things were 'falling apart.'
"This lawsuit was not commenced until March 10, 2009. The parties agree that the applicable statute of limitations for construction defects is three (3) years."
But Waited Almost 4 Years To File Suit
posted March 11, 2011
Circuit Court Judge Jackie Bolton said the city of Chattanooga knew about problems at the 21st Century Waterfront as early as May 2005, but waited almost four years to file suit.
She said all parties in the lawsuit agree that the applicable statute of limitations is three years on construction defects.
Judge Bolton this week dismissed the lawsuit against the RiverCity Company, Continental Construction, Hargreaves and Associates and others involved in the $120 million project.
The city has already spent $1.5 million to fix major problems at The Passage portion of the waterfront attraction.
There are also expensive problems awaiting at the "hard edge" portion of the waterfront. The city is facing a $610,000 cause for a study on the first phase of the corrective work.
Judge Bolton said Lee Norris, deputy public works administrator, noticed problems in early May 2005. She said an employee of the project manager, RiverCity, said at the end of July 2005 that the project was "falling apart."
She said in the opinion dismissing the case, "As the project proceeded, problems arose. These problems were repeatedly documented and noted to the parties involved. The problems were so apparent that even an individual who is not a construction expert, Lee Norris, took notice of several defects and relayed these problems via email on May 2, 2005, to the appropriate parties.
"Despite the problems, the Certificate of Substantial Completion was issued on June 1, 2005. After the Substantial Completion date, similar problems continued as evidenced by an email sent slightly over a month later, on July 29, 2005. An email was sent from an employee of River City, and in the words of the employee, the email was a 'call for help' because things were 'falling apart.'
"This lawsuit was not commenced until March 10, 2009. The parties agree that the applicable statute of limitations for construction defects is three (3) years."