Santa Rosa JC gets $7.5 million in faulty construction settlement

Builders and designers of Santa Rosa Junior College’s health sciences building have agreed to pay the school $7.5 million to settle a construction defects lawsuit filed after the windows and exterior leaked, causing severe moisture and mold problems.

The multi-party settlement --approved by the JC board on Tuesday -- will reimburse the school for its expenses since late 2004 to repair damage and replace defective windows, flashing and exterior brick and stucco, said Bart Weitzenbergthe Santa Rosa attorney who represented the junior college.

“In 30 years of construction defects law, this is easily the most remarkable settlement we’ve seen,” he said after the board’s vote. “It represents 100 cents on the dollar, full payment of the JC’s claim.” He said it also vindicates the JC’s decision to temporarily fix urgent problems in 2004 and 2005 and then permanently repair the building last year, all the while keeping the building open to students and faculty.

The four-story building is named for former SRJC trustee William “Ben” Race and houses classrooms and clinics for 1,200 students in the college’s most popular programs, which train nurses, dental assistants and medical technicians.

It also is home to the student health clinic and has been designated by Sonoma County as an overflow emergency hospital in case of a catastrophe.

The building was constructed in 2000 at a cost of $10 million and opened in 2001. Soon afterward, school officials discovered the exterior walls were leaking where stucco and the brick veneer met. Water also began seeping in around the windows, damaging interior walls and ceilings.

Emergency repairs cost $2.66 million and further fixes will cost $4.1 million, Weitzenberg said. Reconstruction is expected to continue through this year.

The school filed suit in 2004 against the contractor, JW & Sons of Petaluma, and architecture firm Robinson Mills and Williams. After further investigation into the problems, the school added stucco subcontractors James Island Plastering, sheet metal installer Peterson Mechanical, American Tile and Brick Veneer, and B & L Glass Company, which provided the windows.

The brick veneer exterior continued the traditional SRJC architectural look and has been used on other campus buildings without problem, school officials said.

“It’s not often that you have something that’s so glaring,” said David Berry, another of the JC’s attorneys. “But when we took the brick and stucco off the building ... you saw areas where there were very bad construction techniques, gaps where there should not be gaps.”

Fixing leaky areas around windows and the water-diverting metal flashing around them meant removing every window and “massive quantities of brick and stucco,” Berry said.

Weitzenberg declined to itemize the amounts each construction company agreed to pay.

The architectural firm’s attorney, Mark Russell of San Francisco, declined to comment on the agreement. Other defense attorneys didn’t return messages left Tuesday evening.

Randy Campbell of San Francisco, who represented JW & Sons general contractors, said the settlement had been in the works for several months, with help from a judge in San Rafael specially appointed to handle the complex, multi-party case.

“It’s a case we thought ought to settle,” he said. “It’s fair to say that everyone admits they had exposure here. Everyone compromised to reach a settlement.”

Weitzenberg said the leaks were so pervasive the only reasonable approach was to remove the entire exterior and replace it. “At the same time, they had to address the mold findings and the damage to the interior sheetrock and other related problems,” he said.

The school had a certified mold inspection company on site at all times to assure the building was safe.

The $7.5 million settlement includes full reimbursement for the school’s legal fees, costs, expert witness fees and investigation costs.