Oct 22 2009
The law firm of Silldorf & Levine, LLP represents Horizons-Marina District Owners Association which is composed of the owners of 211 high rise condominiums and two commercial units located in two towers at 555 Front Street in the Marina District of downtown San Diego.
The Association has been engaged in construction defect litigation with the developer of the Horizons project, Bosa Development Corporation and its related Bosa entities since February 2008. The Association spent 12 months in the Calderon Process (pre-lawsuit process) before filing a Complaint for Construction Defects in the Superior Court of San Diego County in February of this year. The Complaint includes claims of Strict Liability, Negligence, Breach of Implied and Express Warranties, and Breach of Fiduciary Duty. The construction defect issues at Horizons include the failure of both buildings' cooling towers, water leaking into the subterranean garage, roof leaks, window leaks and water entering homes with balconies.
Bosa prides itself on exemplifying customer care by crafting relationships with homeowners. Their website reads, "At Bosa Development Corporation, we take pride in our impeccable track record. We take great care to ensure that our customers are satisfied. That our buildings remain solid investments, years after they are constructed. Our experience, materials and construction practices ensure the integrity of our buildings and the security of our homeowners' investments." Horizons-Marina District Owners Association board member Jim Walker asserts, "If Bosa would have honored their promises, we would not be in this litigation today."
In the case of the cooling towers (which provide water to heat and/or cool the homes), Bosa's original Department of Real Estate Budget for Horizons states that the system has a lifespan of approximately twenty-five years, and a purported replacement cost in the reserve budget of less than two-hundred thousand dollars. In July, both cooling towers had to be removed via crane from the rooftops of the Horizons' buildings. When the cooling towers were removed, the underside of both had almost completely disintegrated. To make matters worse, the towers leaked and caused damage to the roofs of the buildings. Bosa had installed two Evapco galvanized steel cooling towers when the proper cooling tower for the marine environment and building should have been stainless steel cooling towers. The system failed less than eight years after installation forcing the homeowners at Horizons to take out a bank loan for close to one million dollars to finance the removal and replacement of their HVAC cooling towers. Bosa was asked repeatedly to fix the cooling towers but chose to do nothing.
The Complaint in the construction defect matter alleges that the original reserves in the public report (the White Report) which the Department of Real Estate requires to be given to each purchaser by Bosa at the time of the original sale were inadequate. The Horizons-Marina District Owners Association continues to move forward in the litigation against Bosa. The Association hopes to force Bosa to remedy the defects that are causing damage to their homes.
Source: Silldorf & Levine, LLP