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Sep. 17, 2008
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STRIP DEVELOPMENT: CityCenter construction hits snag

Structural work doesn't match plans filed with county

By ARNOLD M. KNIGHTLY and JOAN WHITELY
REVIEW-JOURNAL

Construction has slowed on The Harmon Hotel, Spa & Residences at CityCenter after some structural work was found not to match building plans submitted to Clark County.

However, the county has agreed the building is structurally safe for workers to correct the nonconforming work, which is believed to exist on 15 of the 22 existing floors. Ultimately, The Harmon will have 47 stories.

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    • "We have workers in there currently," said Craig Shaw, chief executive officer of Perini Building Co., the general contractor on CityCenter. "They're working on the corrections in concert with instructions we have from the structural engineer of record."

    "Perini is as proactive as can be, and taking care of it," said Steve Ross, who is secretary-treasurer of the Southern Nevada Building and Construction Trades Council. The organization has been vocal in expressing concerns about safety at the mammoth CityCenter construction site.

    The Harmon is part of the "gateway" to City Center. The nongaming hotel and condo residence stands at the southwest corner of the Strip at Harmon Avenue. Conspicuous for its rounded edges, The Harmon will eventually have a glass exterior that simulates the color of ocean waves.

    The Harmon's remediation work involves proper placement of reinforcing bar, commonly known as rebar, in some of the tower's walls. Some of the rebar was spaced differently -- sometimes only a distance of inches -- than originally designed, in order to avoid hitting vertical steel. The affected rebar was placed within horizontal beams that reinforce the structural concrete above doors or other wall openings.

    However, the shift was not cleared with building inspectors. Problems were first identified in early July, and Clark County officials ordered the rebar work to stop on July 18.

    Getting county approval in advance is "something that should have been done, but wasn't," Shaw said. "But the reality is, this is sometimes the way the process works" with corrective work taking place after inspectors find errors.

    On Aug. 1, the county approved the revision devised by the structural engineer of record, Halcrow Yolles. It analyzed the problematic work and then submitted new plans, which entail doing minimal demolition into targeted wall areas, correcting the rebar and repacking concrete.

    Workers are fixing the 15th floor. Shaw, who expects having to rework floors six through 20, said the problem has put the tower's construction two weeks behind schedule. Vertical construction is stalled on the 22nd floor, as subcontractors await clearance to pour concrete on the 23rd floor.

    Shaw said responsibility for the nonconforming work lies with Perini, structural engineer firm Halcrow Yolles and Pacific Coast Steel, the reinforcing steel subcontractor. He declined to estimate the cost of repairs.

    "That's when it's going to get juicy," as the parties decide who will cover the additional cost, said Donny Grayman, business agent for Local 416 of the Reinforcing Ironworkers Union. Members of the local are doing the rebar work at CityCenter, with some workers idled until upward construction at The Harmon resumes.

    Shaw said he is confident that the lost time will be recovered and the condominium-hotel will be completed on schedule.

    Contact reporter Arnold Knightly at aknightly@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Contact reporter Joan Whitely at jwhitely@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0268.



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    Rotten wrote on September 19, 2008 08:20 AM: Dear James,

    My little trroubled dweeb....

    It's so trendy to pretend that you know how to insult the concerned readers of the R.J. On that note...
    Is that your head or did your neck throw up?

    When buildings collapse because of your faulty construction work, maybe you can check back in with us. Hopefully your family will be part of the disaster.
    Party at James' house. B.Y.O.S.!!!!(Bring Your Own Shovels) What little sheep. Right Goat?


    Doug wrote on September 19, 2008 04:08 AM: They made me do it Fred.
    I got the show tickets. I got the jacket and the hat. They screwed me on the Suite. I asked my boss about the Suite and he said "Next time."
    Mr. Lynn is usually pretty good about getting us our stuff when they run out. We don't pay for anything in this town anymore. The FIX is on.
    Do me a favor Fred. Get a job. Then call me you goat.


    Fred Frazzetta wrote on September 18, 2008 12:25 AM: LittleBird,

    Wanted to let you know that the Harrah's Dog & Pony Show is still not over...they are still fixing their illegal remodels. They keep getting their court cases postponed...in the hope that someday in the near future they will be able to stand in court and tell the Judge that they have finally completed the massive repairs, which were required for them to make their rooms safe again for the public to stay in. I've been told that today starting about 9:00am, the Clark County Fire Department will be on standby at Harrah's Hotel & Casino LV for at least 4 hours to protect the Hotel, because Statewide Fire Protection will be replacing bad pieces of pipe, and a very heavy piece of the Fire Safety System - which are leaking, therefore compromising the safety system.

    Funny that the CC Building Department actually made them resubmit plans for approval, because at the Flamingo Hotel there was a remodel done where Harrahs deviated from the permitted plans, and they were not required to resubmit. The inspector was Doug Buelow, and he allowed a wall that was to remain standing, to be completely demolished and then rebuilt. I filed a complaint and was told that Mr. Buelow made them take the wall out because it did not meet the current Building Code Requirements. Of course this is not the story that I got from the workers, but we will give Mr. Buelow the benefit of the doubt. What confuses me though is the fact that blatant violations of the current building code in the bathrooms of the Flamingo "Go Rooms" were not addressed by this stellar inspector. But at the Caesars Palace remodel another inspector made Harrahs do it to code. Doug, why did you do it?


    LittleBird wrote on September 17, 2008 05:01 PM: James,
    "Obviously, none of the agenda-pushing Chicken Little commenters below have ever been involved in any type of consruction project. Things like this happen on almost EVERY project, large or small. Get over it".
    I guess it's hard to get over shoddy work and workers that could put peoples lives into life safety issues.You obviously have never worked on a decent project that expected quality work for just compensation.The one time I terminated a worker and enjoyed it was for this type of BS and his attitude.The project was a lot better off after his departure,and my punch list quit growing.


    Mama Bear wrote on September 17, 2008 04:17 PM: Corruption is like a contagious pandemic. You can bet the county commissioners who approved the CityCenter mess are either in prison or under indictment.

    NOTE TO NEVADA'S FBI SPECIAL TASK FORCE ON CORRUPTION:
    When will Virginia Valentine be investigated? And, also her former boss? All you have to do is follow the scent of the MGM MIRAGE money trail. . .


    K2 wrote on September 17, 2008 02:12 PM: Sh$&ty Center????
    Bad idea from the start. Someone got paid off to approve this mess.


    George wrote on September 17, 2008 02:04 PM: This is what happens when you hire out of state contractors that underbid, and now are taking the short cuts to meet the price. The whole project should be scrapped, or at least let the Feds and state go over every inch of this disaster. The way this slip shod project sounds, who needs aircraft, this thing will come crashing down on its own over time, killing anyone near it or in it. With the economy what it is, and toursim slipping monthly, Vegas needs this project like a hole in the head. I say scrap it, cut your losses, and send the bafoons working on this project back to their respective home states............


    hilobamacaine wrote on September 17, 2008 11:46 AM: james; according to the the glvar the city center will provide thousands of jobs that will help the real estate market recover they would'nt lie to us would they?


    James wrote on September 17, 2008 08:25 AM: LittleBird, you said it all.

    I bet Virginia Valentine will get another raise.


    James wrote on September 17, 2008 08:25 AM: Obviously, none of the agenda-pushing Chicken Little commenters below have ever been involved in any type of consruction project. Things like this happen on almost EVERY project, large or small. Get over it.

    PS: CityCenter isn't going to solve your problems, so why not leave Las Vegas now and take your atttitude with you?


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