303 replies to this topic

[DavidSchell]

It's a bit of a chicken-and-egg scenario. Without a disclosure statement to present, they cannot bargain with you, and there will not be a disclosure statement until they have their approvals in hand. Engaging in hypotheticals is a no-no for a developer negotiating with a signed buyer.

At least that's my read on how that works. Can anyone else opine on that?

That was my understanding. We didn't sign the amendment as we were waiting to see if they got the go ahead. We were asking to be moved up two floors for each unit.

[max.bravo]

some people on reddit are saying construction quality is sus.

 

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Edited by max.bravo, 29 February 2024 - 08:35 AM.

[Mike K.]

Nothing like an anonymous source on the internet making statements about construction quality with no evidence and no details.

[max.bravo]

I see it as evidence of the importance of maintaining public trust in construction. The Danbrook issue planted a seed in peoples' minds - if something that big can be built so wrong that it's uninhabitable, what else might developers be screwing up on?

 

Prior to Danbrook it seemed rare for these type of anonymous accusations to go anywhere, but judging by the upvotes and interest in the comments... people now seem less willing to disregard anonymous accusations like that. It shows that Danbrook undermined an entire industry, in a sense.

Edited by max.bravo, 29 February 2024 - 09:06 AM.

[Victoria Watcher]

Too bad nobody ever really explained the Danbrook problems.

[Mike K.]

I see it as evidence of the importance of maintaining public trust in construction. The Danbrook issue planted a seed in peoples' minds - if something that big can be built so wrong that it's uninhabitable, what else might developers be screwing up on?

Prior to Danbrook it seemed rare for these type of anonymous accusations to go anywhere, but judging by the upvotes and interest in the comments... people now seem less willing to disregard anonymous accusations like that. It shows that Danbrook undermined an entire industry, in a sense.

There were never any accusations against Danbrook, though.

But on the flip side, wouldn’t this building be getting more scrutiny because of Danbrook? I can no longer buy these random, anonymous internet posts claiming issues. I’ve heard so many over the years that have gone nowhere.

Like you’ve got to think, that if random people on the internet are posting things like this, that authorities are checking out the work. Danbrook never had any publicly identified problems. It was a design that wasn’t to code, right? Here, it’s not the design, it’s the workmanship, I think?

[nrtphotos]

I don’t think there’s any denying that the concrete work here has been subpar at best, I’ve posted several photos showcasing this. You don’t typically see this at sites run by the big GC’s in town. I had specifically asked who was going to be used as the GC before we signed, the selling realtor stated it was going to be Campbell and they were in final discussions. You can imagine my displeasure when that didn’t materialize and Lexi took over.

Again, I won’t be too upset if they run out of money and someone else comes in to bring the project across the finish line.

[Nparker]

...I won’t be too upset if they run out of money and someone else comes in to bring the project across the finish line.

Be careful what you wish for...it could be a VERY long time coming. Sometimes the devil you know is better than the devil you don't know.

[nrtphotos]

True, it just felt like we had been lied to at the time, who knows if they even talked to Campbell. They can hold our money for a period of time but there is a sunset date for when they have to pay back if they can’t complete. All I know is I will be hiring the most thorough home inspector I can find for when we do our final inspection lol.

[MarkoJ]

True, it just felt like we had been lied to at the time, who knows if they even talked to Campbell. They can hold our money for a period of time but there is a sunset date for when they have to pay back if they can’t complete. All I know is I will be hiring the most thorough home inspector I can find for when we do our final inspection lol.

 

Unfortunately not much a home inspector can inspect...plugs? I've attend over 200+ final inspections on condos in my career and my clients have hired an inspector maybe 5 times and I didn't see the value in it once. 

 

Regarding everyone bringing up the Danbrook, there is a huge difference. Danbrook was a design flaw which cannot be easily identified (other than those in the know) versus what appears to be poor concrete work can easily be seen by the structural engineer and architect and they can make a professional assessment accordingly. You have to think if they were going to add two floors to the building there is a huge structural buffer in terms of safety. 

[nrtphotos]

I see your point regarding the inspection. I view it more for having issues documented properly and also for inspection of common areas and exterior, I was in a different trade so it’s not my exact area of expertise. 
 

I found it interesting to that the developer revealed that there were somewhere around ten units that were unsold, I haven’t seen these marketed anywhere? Are they holding onto units to sell on completion? 

[nrtphotos]

I heard that there was a structural collapse of some completed stairs this morning and WCB is on site, can anyone confirm this?

[DavidSchell]

WCB was their ... site is shut down except for some excavation

[max.bravo]

Bet Esq council is feeling good about their choice today. Geez, that’s crazy - completed stairs collapsed? Does that happen often on construction sites?

[nrtphotos]

I was told that four floors of completed stairs collapsed this morning, obviously I can’t 100% confirm this but I believe my source is correct. I stopped by and one of the traffic flaggers mentioned there had been some form of incident with “stairs” and that the site was closed, looked like there was some Worksafe people there too. I can only imagine the kind of investigation that this will trigger. 
 

I guess my spidey senses weren’t completely out to lunch….

[nrtphotos]

I’ve managed to gather a little more information over the week. I was able to confirm with WorkSafe that yes, an incident occurred on Monday and investigators were on site. The investigator was extremely limited in what he could tell me besides that, but encouraged me to file an FOI to get more information (he can’t legally say anything but wanted me to know what was going on). There was a post today on an Esquimalt Facebook group where someone commented that it was the eighth floor stairs that collapsed. The poster was complaining about the slight curve in the parking level that you can see from behind - I’m fairly confident this is deliberate for drainage. 

 

I visited every day after work this week and checked today (Saturday). Absolutely no one on site today, a first for a Saturday and no Lexi staff on site when I arrived around 4:30PM on the weekdays, another first - I’ve seen people on site frequently as late as 9:00PM. No sign of any work on the tower itself, it’s usually pretty easy to spot differences even day to day. However, they’ve pulled out the excavator on the back end (despite not being done excavating or blasting), removed a seacan and had a security company installing perimeter cameras. I suspect that they have been issued a stop work order or are having to reinspect the structure - worst case they are running out of money and are pausing?

[Nparker]

...I suspect that they have been issued a stop work order or are having to reinspect the structure - worst case they are running out of money and are pausing?

Or all of the above.

[nrtphotos]

Yeah, it’s anyone’s guess at this point. 

[Fairbanks]

What an ugly piece of S***

[Nparker]

If the developers were counting on the revenue from the sale of two additional floors of units to finance construction, they may well be in a difficult financial position at this time.