Blogs

Construction

Round 2 – Builder Claim for Coverage In Chinese Drywall Survives Motion

Frequent readers will know that we have talked about Chinese drywall litigation and issues quite a bit here. One of the ugliest cases was a builder who proactively repaired drywall issues having its initial complaint against its insurers who did not provide a defense thrown out on motion to dismiss. The court originally found that…

July 22, 2010

Construction

ABC-VA Headquarters: Aiming for LEED Gold

Associated Builders & Contractors Virginia Chapter (ABC-VA) has officially opened its quite impressive new headquarters location. The building project was managed by J.J. McCarthy as owner’s representative, head of its green building committee. The project featured numerous ABC member contractors and design professionals, including BE&K Building Group as general contractor and Morgan Gick McBeath &…

July 20, 2010

Construction

Virginia Transportation Stimulus Spending: Dead Last and Slow as Molasses

A recent blog post at ENR reviewed recent reports on the spending of transportation related stimulus funding. The post analyzed a report by the House Transporation and Infrastructure Committee detailing where all the states stand on stimulus spending. Readers may recall that back in March we discussed Virginia’s lagging in spending its stimulus dollars. Simply…

July 15, 2010

Construction

Part II – Review of your Form Purchase Agreement

Part II – Review of your Form Purchase Agreement In this Part II, we continue our review of some important items to review in your form purchase and sale agreements.

July 12, 2010

Construction

What Does Arlington and the City of Guelph Have in Common? Peter Garforth.

I attended the meeting last Wednesday night regarding the impact of Arlington County’s Community Energy Plan on the Arlington development community, held by the County’s lead consultant, Peter Garforth, of Garforth International, Jay Fissette, the Chairman of the Arlington County Board, and numerous industry representatives. I initially blogged about this several months ago (see the…

July 7, 2010

Construction

Impacting Negotiations: From Round Tables to Soft Chairs

Law and negotiation go hand in hand and understanding the psychology surrounding negotiation is critical to successfully representing clients. I have long been fascinated by the wrangling of the parties over the shape of the table in discussions to negotiate the end of the Viet Nam war. As stated eloquently in Time Magazine: For ten…

July 6, 2010

Construction

Review your form Purchase Agreement

Part I – Builders Review of Purchase Agreement Virginia has experienced several years now of a declining residential real estate market, marked by periods of low sales, high inventory and declining prices. Note that recently the prices and inventory have stabilized, but certainly activity has slowed again now that the federal tax credits for homebuyers…

June 29, 2010

Construction

Lead Paint Updated: Commercial Buildings, Clearance Testing, and Chance to Comment

As we originally posted on April 30, EPA has issued notice that its recent lead paint regulations may be changing. Specifically, EPA published a proposed rule on May 6 providing for clarifications and changes in clearance testing. For commercial contractors thinking they were spared from worrying about lead paint regulation, EPA also issued an advance…

June 28, 2010

Construction

Challenges to LEED Certifications: Standing, Procedure, Wiggle Room and Money

The blogs have been crackling for several weeks with reports and analysis of the LEED “challenge” process. Chris Cheatham devoted a multiple part series to analyzing the challenge filed and ultimately rejected to the LEED Gold certification awarded to the Northland Pines High School in Wisconsin. Shari Shapiro has discussed the same and included an…

June 24, 2010

Construction

Balancing Affordable Housing, Historic Preservation and Progress: The Fort Myer Heights North Plan

The area considered to be inclusive of Fort Myer Heights is basically the down-hill slope from Arlington’s Courthouse Sector on the hill above of Route 50 north of Fort Myer, bounded to the north by Clarendon Boulevard and to the south by Route 50, Courthouse Road to the west and Pierce Street to the east.…

June 23, 2010