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twitterCityCenter work often precedes approval of plans
Ultimately, county says, it ensures compliance with codes
Monday, Feb. 16, 2009 | 2 a.m.
Sun Archives
- Perini redirects blame for errors at Harmon (2-9-2009)
- Adaptation or ‘disaster’?: Depends on your view of the Harmon (2-8-2009)
- County wants proof CityCenter structures are free of defects (2-6-2009)
- Watchers were not watched (1-15-2009)
- How did CityCenter tower flaws persist? (1-8-2009)
- MGM Mirage cancels CityCenter condo project (1-7-2009)
In hundreds of instances, construction at MGM Mirage’s massive CityCenter project has moved forward based on unapproved engineering, a Sun review of reports issued by private inspectors at the work site shows.
In those cases, inspectors on the project reported that contractors were working from last-minute drawings that affected the structural integrity of the building but had not been approved by the county. In some cases, the engineer of record also had not approved the drawings.
County inspectors regularly review the inspectors’ reports — called “noncompliance reports” — to make sure the entire project is ultimately built to code despite unapproved fixes, county spokesman Dan Kulin said.
By the time the project is finished, all plans should be retroactively approved so the practice of building based on yet-to-be-approved plans shouldn’t lead to unsafe buildings, Kulin emphasized.
Yet the practice is the inverse of how the process is supposed to work: Officially, the county requires that all engineering changes be approved and stamped before that portion of construction begins.
“This is a situation where the contractor or owner is taking a risk, and we’re certainly seeing that the process documents when they’re deviating from the approved plans,” Kulin said. “If it doesn’t comply with code, they’ll end up having to go back to make additional modifications.”
In the past year, the Harmon and two Veer towers at CityCenter encountered significant structural problems that required major engineering changes.
Last month, MGM Mirage announced that it would top off the Harmon at about half its planned height because of the belated discovery of 15 floors of problematic rebar, as well as economic concerns.
Documents do not reveal a clear connection between the common use of unapproved plans and the problems at the Harmon and the Veer.
Representatives of neither CityCenter general contractor Perini Building Co. nor owner MGM Mirage responded to requests for comment.
The county has a plan-checker on the CityCenter site several days a week to take care of engineering changes or fixes that are needed on the project, Kulin said. Most approvals take from “minutes to days,” he said, but some more complicated plan changes take longer.
For the fast-paced building that Las Vegas has become known for, a wait of any length for an approval can be too long. The informal system of building with unapproved plan changes is not unique to CityCenter and has for years allowed builders in Las Vegas to work at a breakneck pace by cutting time spent waiting for the county to approve plans, industry insiders say.
“We would just let them go, go, go, go and get them stamped later,” said a Clark County building inspector who spoke on the condition his name would not be used. “The whole idea is not to slow down the project. When we catch mistakes later they have to go back and do jack-hammering or add stuff, put it back in.”
The inspector said he has observed occasions over the years where retroactive changes that would be difficult to make were not enforced by the county.
“Sometimes we get to areas and it’s just too late now and we’ve got to accept it,” he said.
County officials say, however, that they require builders to make changes if they have used plans that are not up to code, as was the case at the Harmon.
The building inspector said the department has been cracking down somewhat on building with unapproved plans since the problems at the Harmon came to light.
Some observers say they find the practice troubling.
“This seems, from my perspective, a systemic failure,” said Neil Opfer, a professor of construction management at UNLV. “I can understand something drops through the cracks so you issue a noncompliance report, a slap on the hand, say ‘Don’t do it again.’ It would seem if stuff is happening over and over, that would be a significant problem.”
At the two Veer towers, where major structural problems were discovered last summer, inspectors employed by Kleinfelder issued dozens of reports indicating that contractors were building from unapproved plans.
For example, on May 1, Kleinfelder inspector Roy Mulinix said contractors were using a fix detail for an elevator structure that had been drawn up two weeks before by the engineer and hadn’t been stamped by the engineer or the county.
The county relies on private inspectors to report the cases of noncompliance. But those inspectors are not always reliable. At the Harmon, inspectors employed by Converse Consultants issued numerous false reports stating that everything was fine, the county has said.
The county insists rebar plans at the Harmon were in compliance, and Perini says the plans were faulty.
On the lower floors of the Harmon, before the rebar problems began, inspectors issued several reports indicating that contractors were basing their construction on unapproved plans.
On Dec. 6, 2007, Converse inspector Robert Davidson noted that an SME Steel employee was welding vertical 1-inch plates based on unapproved drawings.
At the Veer, Kleinfelder inspectors eventually discovered that subcontractor Steel Engineers was performing the wrong kind of welding on both towers.
Eventually contractors fixed the issues at the Veer towers by wrapping a “fiberglass-like” material around columns, Kulin said.
On May 15, just days before the county documented problems at the Veer, county inspectors issued a “notice of violation” to Perini stating that work there was based on verbal approval or written details that weren’t officially approved either by the engineer or the county.
The county ordered Perini to produce an engineer stamp immediately.
“Certainly in an ideal situation, the process in place is geared toward getting plans approved and then doing construction,” Kulin said. “But we do not really have control over all the aspects of a construction site. The main point would be that so long as the construction complies with county code, that’s what we’re interested in.”
One private special inspector, who spoke on the condition that he not be identified, said unapproved plans can pose a problem because they make it more likely that inspectors will miss construction mistakes in cases where contractors are not complying with even the unapproved plans.
That happens, he said, because he is sometimes given county-approved plans, while contractors are basing their construction on unapproved plans that differ from those in his hands.
“Sometimes I’m working on revision No. 3 and all of a sudden they’re working on revision six and it doesn’t quite match up,” he said.
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Is this really news??? I am sure on every Job around the country and the world the same things happen. Corruption happens all day. Wether its not telling the checkout girl at the grocery store that your turnips rang up cheaper than they are. People are inherentely messed up. We all are NO ONE is perfect. It just depends on the severity or level of the corruption or dishonest wether a company or a private citizen.
I thought I read in these pages, that there would be inspector inspectors, and monitors. Then of course with the current construction boom, that might not be possible. I can imagine the county plan checker is swamped.
I do think we need tougher legislation here to avoid these problems...If if does happen elsewhere it doesnt mean it should happen here.
This is in response to numerous recent articles in the Las Vegas Sun regarding the construction
at CityCenter. This,of course, the approximate $9 billion project being managed by MGM Mirage.
In my opinion the "reckless track" construction procedures at CityCenter are disturbing.The lack of discipline, and control, on the parts of MGM Mirage and the County are placing both the public safety and the local aesthetics of this project in harms way. The systemic failure to follow accepted construction practices and regulations is obvious from the reports in the Las Vegas Sun..
Your article in today's edition contains the following quote: "This seems, from my perspective, a systemic failure," said Neil Opfer, a professor of construction management at UNLV. "I can understand something drops through the cracks so you issue a noncompliance report, a slap on the hand, say 'Don't do it again.' It would seem if stuff is happening over and over, that would be a significant problem."
From all appearances MGM Mirage and the County seem to be turning their heads away from the chronically flawed practices that appear to be plaguing this enormous project. As an example, the "fast track" practices being employed by MGM Mirage resulted in nearly half of the Harmon building being constructed before defective rebar was discovered in about 15 stories of that building. The MGM Mirage fix? " Drop construction of about a half of the Building, and don't fix the flawed rebar installation.
In my opinion, the County should hire an expert consultant to review the MGM Mirage construction procedures, and hold up further construction at CityCenter until the expert's report and recommendations are issued.
So let's say an earthquake rattles Vegas and because the buildings at City Center have some structural issues they fall apart. Whose to blame then? I guess everyone's just taking a chance that nothing will happen on their watch.
It's not legislation that is needed, it's strict enforcement of the building code that is needed. Professor Opfer is correct. It's a systemic problem. What I believe has become accepted practice is the County plan check approval and inspection process has, probably for many years now, allowed contractors and developers to continue construction when design changes or delays due to the approval process occur. There are times,however, that County building officials must STOP construction ( issue a stop notice) in the affected area until the design changes have been made and stamped by the Engineer of Record, subsequently approved by the County and properly distributed to the inspectors. I suspect, though, that through the years there have been countless times when enormous pressures were exerted on County staff by well- heeled developers, local politicians and council members to allow construction to proceed or to approve an ill-advised variance after the change was in place. What is the solution? I believe what must happen now is that the County must, through outreach programs, inform the developers and contracting community that construction WILL be halted (no exceptions or after the fact variances) for the affected area until the proper procedures are followed. The outreach program should also communicate probable estimates for the time required by the County to review and approve various design changes during construction. What this will hopefully achieve is this: When a developer seeks bids for construction of a major project, they will have included additional funding (maybe 10% or more) into the projects cost estimate to cover the delay costs for changes during construction. It really comes down to a fundamental change in the bidding climate. GAMING AND HOTEL OWNERS OR DEVELOPERS MUST UNDERSTAND THAT THE COUNTY IS STRICTLY ENFORCING THE BUILDING AND ADMINISTRATIVE CODES AND IS TAKING A UNIFIED, TOP MANAGEMENT TO FIELD INSPECTOR STANCE ON DESIGN CHANGES DURING CONSTRUCTION SUCH THAT THE OWNERS OR DEVELOPERS ANTICIPATE AND ARE FUNDED FOR THE EXTRA COSTS AND DELAYS ASSOCIATED WITH REVISIONS TO THE DESIGN AFTER CONSTRUCTION BEGINS. Once the developers and contracting community understand the new realities of constructing projects within Clark County, I would bet that there would be significantly less changes to the project during construction. (Incidently, I have no facts to support my opinion regarding what has happened other than what I have read in this article. But after working for 26 years in the construction industry in and for the City of Los Angeles, I understand the construction change processes very well.)
"Ultimately, county says, it ensures compliance with codes."
Except when, you know, it doesn't. Which seems to be all the time.
I'll bet if Mr. K. had to choose this project now, he would say no way, do something smaller, less massive.
I hope when it is complete it all looks good, because for now it's an eyesore, in my opinion.
Media and industry pressure on the developer and
County may help turn around the loose, and in the case of the developer MGM Mirage, apparent cavalier attitude toward the failing and noncompliant construction practices being employed at CityCenter.
In no recent case were these failed practices more apparent than in regard to the Harmon building. Imagine, constructing half the building before the Engineer--not the assigned
inspectors or the County-- discovered that the installation of embedded rebar in about the first 15 floors was defective. MGM Mirage's
fix for the problem?--leave the defective rebar as is, and don't constuct the other half of Harmon. On the face of it this appears not only to be a serious potential safety threat,but secondarily it seriously compromises the aesthetic image of the entire CityCenter--the Harmon has recently been referred to as the "stub". What all of this has really brought to light is the shoddy and noncompliant constuction practices that are being employed at CityCenter.
Not only that, but how will just the historical sense of what happened to the Harmon affect values moving forward?
Never mind to 2:39 P.M. I refreshed my memory that the remaining floors are hotel only. No owners to contend with. That's a good thing. Though it is an unprecedented situation and impacts the project as a whole.
Right, they were condos only. MGM is just as happy not to have them probably in this market.
And I agree it impacts the project as a whole, and resulted of course from the oversights noted above.
"Ultimately, county says, it ensures compliance with codes."
It is difficult for me to express just how much I mistrust this statement. We are not talking about installing a water fountain in the city park.
When the outcome of "ensuring compliance" is the major mid-construction redesign of a massive structure designed to hold thousands of human lives hundreds of feet in the air, something is very very very wrong! The last thing I want to hear is somebody trying to appease the public with "Don't worry, everything is fine" when in fact it is obvious that everything is not fine!
it's rumored that there were coke parties starting on friday's since it would be out of their system by monday, and that subs would hire strippers for the superintendents during the construction of this project. no wonder why the re-bar was installed wrong.....
Any one that believes this flawed process as described will provide code compliant buildings is naive. If you construct without the benefit of a code compliant plan, you do not have code compliance. With multiple revisions of plans, there is likely to be little creditable documentation of what is actually put in place. When critical components, like rebar, are encased in concrete, it's difficult to certify they were the right diameter, with proper splices, in the proper locations, with the proper spacing, in compliance with a code compliant plan that is "yet to be developed" let alone reviewed and certified (stamped) by the engineer of record, approved by the county, and submitted to the contractor for construction.
It appears from the story that all any one wants is the engineers stamp, as it will magically make everything right. The county does not guaranty code compliance, only that there is an engineer's certification that the plan is code compliant. I remember in 1981 a minor structural threaded rod connection failed and a walkway collapsed at the Hyatt Regency Kansas City killing 114 guests and injuring many others.
Structural failures are not just accidents, nor acts of God. They are the results of human error originating from oversight, carelessness, ignorance or greed. Lets hope the owners really have their act together and hold their construction administration teams accountable for both a beautiful and safe City Center.
The MGM Grand is so busy advertising the 12,000 jobs that will be available at City Center, that they forgot haste makes waste. Slow down the construction and make it right MGM Grand, don't put thousands of people's lives in danger with your selfish and greedy ways.
I remember what an old superintendent told me years ago about City/County/State engineers-"He'd stamp your di*k to keep his job, because they're not liable anyway". And the proof is in the official stamp that they apply to the plans. Sort of a Sergeant Schultz "Hogan, I hear nothing, I see nothing..." approach. And tomorrow, let's talk about the Union Craftymen...
Looks like all of the Casinos in Las Vegas seem to think that they are above the law, and public safety means nothing to any of them! Starting with the "Good Old Boy Network" of old Vegas, greasing palms has become the norm rather than the exception. We have according to Ron Lynn the toughest construction codes in the United States, but sadly we do not enforce them! I don't know about you, but I want people that have some balls to stand up to wrong doing and truly have the publics' safety as their top priority. Why do we need agencies such as OSHA, Contractor's Board, Gaming Commission, Real Estate Commission, Ombudsman Office, EPA, Health Department, Fire Department, Building Department, District Attorney's Office, Attorney General's Office etc...etc...etc if they are not going to do their jobs? We have been sold out on every level by people and agencies that are entrusted to protect us.
Harrah's remodels 1,000 of their hotel rooms illegally, leaving every room that they touched unsafe for the public to stay in (this is documented by both the Clark County Building & Fire Departments). My sources tell me that Harrah's will hit the two year mark in fixing their many self caused screw-ups. Yet, the DA's Office under the direction of David Roger has refused to further investigate Harrah's illegal activities, which at the very least show "willful" GROSS NEGLIGIENCE on the part of Harrah's regarding the safety of not only their Guests, but their employees as well. Harrah's started their illegal remodels back in the early to mid 1990's. Harrah's has provided real "fire traps" for their Guests to stay in for many years. Keep in mind the fact that their redundant fire safety systems were all compromised because of their illegal remodels.
The Nevada Gaming Commission fined the owner of Imperial Palace 2.5 million dollars for his "Hitler" themed party, which according to them damaged Las Vegas's image. Harrah's tried to have a "Guest Fry", and would have if there had been a fire...I don't believe that the no harm, no foul rule applies in this instance...or does it because people have been paid off to make this go away? Harrah's created a situation that could have had catastrophic consequences if there had been a fire. What's worse: the party theme or death trap rooms for Vegas guests to stay in? Harrah's needs to be held accountable for what they did - hotel guests should not have to cross their fingers in the hope that their hotel room are safe.
Is not Pelosi's company building Center City?
Somebody else here said Di Fi owned stock in Perini, but had not heard anything about Pelosi.