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A U G U S T , 2 0 1 6
&
What is the biggest
construction nightmare you
have uncovered while doing
a project, and how was it
handled?
"I find the most frustrating of transition problems to be
water penetration issues. My first experience took place
nearly 20 years ago, with an association with a significant
number of unit basements with substantial leaks. We went
about the process in the usual way, with the association
engineer inspecting, diagnosing the problem, and offer-
ing a solution. After some back and forth, the developer
agreed to the specified fix, and executed it. The problem
was that the agreed upon solution did not fix the problem,
and the leaks continued, but now were the Association’s
problem, rather than that of the developer, because the
developer had been released by doing what the associ-
ation expert told them to. The lesson that I learned is that
water problems should be viewed as a collaborative prob-
lem, and releases given only when the solution is found to
work, in the real world, and not just on paper."
Michael Pesce, PCAM
Associa
®
– Community Management Corp.
"The worst construction nightmare I uncovered was during
a repaving project. As the contractor began to mill, we
discovered the builder had buried broken / unused doors
and windows under the road. The additional subsurface
excavation, restoration & disposal cost several thousands of
dollars. This occurred just 3 years after transition had been
completed."
Dan Fusco, CMCA
Associa
®
– Community Management Corp.
"Halfway through a full lobby renovation, the specialized
tile intended for the floors, previously confirmed as shipped,
was backordered by a full 6 months. It had taken the
Association so long to choose the design based on that
product, but there was no was that the project could sit
that long. We held an emergency meeting at which our
vendor offered a presentation with available alternatives.
The community responded enthusiastically and positively –
we were able to achieve a solid vote on a different option,
and continued the renovation with a delay of only 2 days."
Alexandra Crossett
Associa
®
– Community Management Corp.
"A few years back two families in a townhome building
suddenly experienced un-level counter tops, sloping floors
and cracked tiles. The issues were serious enough to hire
an engineer to do some invasive testing then.
Based on the reports received, experts proposed remov-
ing the existing foundations and properly back filling and
stabilizing the soil before re-pouring the foundations. The
estimated timetable of displacement was a few months. The
families were moved to extended stay hotels. Furniture,
flooring, appliances and all personal possessions on the
first levels were removed to pods and storage facilities.
Well, during foundation removal the contractor found the
concrete to be several inches thicker than normal, an indica-
tion the developer likely knew there was a drainage issue or
high water table. In addition, soil had “disappeared” a foot or
two below the footings. There was no sign of water or wash
out so where the soil went remains a mystery.
With no guarantee the proposed stabilization and back
filling would not eventually result in “disappearing soil”, the
engineers went back to the drawing board and specified
helical piles be installed into the bedrock to shore up the
sinking foundations.
These piles are hydraulically screwed into the ground and
attached to an elaborate anchoring system. Some piles were
driven more than 15 feet down before solid bedrock was hit.
The final timetable when all was said and done – 7 months!"
Terry Viggiano, CMCA, AMS, PCAM, ARM,
Whispering Woods, RCP Managment