Where were the 3rd party inspectors?

Demolition of a 2001 built 25 story apt bldg for construction defects- where were the 3rd party inspectors? MH news at bit.ly/dtB7Wk

Ounce of prevention applied in the beginning would've saved all parties a lot of money. Hope the contractor has good insurance?

Let's not forget the soil investigation firm, foundation engineer, the architect, structural engineer, the failed materials vendor, the lender's representative, the municipal inspector, etc.

In summary, the other half of the "construction cost" will go to the attorneys.

Ah yes, the attorney's always end up the winner, don't they. Had some Risk maangement services been used or offfered in the beginning, this story would never have been told.

Without too many details being divulged, it appears there were oversight deficiencies aplenty. Who approved the shops and product/material data? Why were the engineers and architects not on site for critical milestone inspections? Did the field crew verify approved material installation? Who was contracted for special inspections and were they qualified for this type of scope?and the list could go on.

It is a shame that this one project will be the eyesore that all developers remember about construction; what they wont figure out is how many completed projects out there were executed correctly. It is a shame this has happened for all involved. One hell of a lesson learned that we all need to remember.

The most important lesson to be learned form this situation, is to implament the safe guards going forward tonot repeat the same mistakes. That's progress.

Don't forget about the residents being forced to move out and the retail tenants (with expensive improvements) having to start somewhere else. The comments are all good, but fault and construction mangement lessons are only part of the story. The effects are widespread and the PR issues significant. If you owned the building, would you handle the situation the same way?

This is another case of speed housing that is often found in high demand markets. Seattle was in need of good quality housing in 2001 and this development was undoubtably moved quickly through the system. Having seen this before, it is the lender that must protect the value of the asset backed loan with independent inspections and continual communication with the owner and developer.

"Measure twice, cut once. When in doubt, check it out."