County responds to lawsuit by contractor

Erica D. Johnson

Thursday, Aug. 21, 2003 | 9:28 a.m.

Clark County attorneys on Wednesday responded to a lawsuit filed by the construction company responsible for the renovation of the Clark County Detention Center and the construction of the behind-schedule Regional Justice Center.

In a suit filed last week AF Construction Co. charged the county with mismanagement, breach of contract and defamation and demanded repayment of about $4 million in retention fees stemming from the renovation of the jail.

The company requested an arbitrator to handle similar issues regarding the justice center. Work on that project was scheduled to be finished in January 2002.

In court documents filed Wednesday, Clark County attorneys Lee Thomson and Holly Gordon outlined several reasons why arbitration in the matter should be halted.

The attorneys request an injunction preventing the company from selecting a second arbitrator.

They also request an injunction preventing the company from demanding arbitration until it has first submitted its claim to the Disputes Resolution Board.

Eleissa Lavelle, attorney for the construction company, declined to comment on the county's request for an injunction.

She noted, however, that the county disbanded the Disputes Resolution Board in January 2002, immediately before it was to consider additional payment for the extensions.

The county also requests the court to correct an "inadvertent clerical error" in the justice center contract, which mistakenly says the contractor can select both the first and the second arbitrator.

"That sentence should have been revised to give the party not demanding arbitration the right to appoint the second arbitrator," the document states.

The document alleges that the construction company could gain an unfair advantage during arbitration if the error remains.

AF Construction Co. claims delays in the construction of the justice center were due to design flaws and discrepancies in the county's structural and architectural drawings.