Anaheim, Builders Settle Case on Exhibit Hall Construction

ANAHEIM — The city has agreed to pay one of the county’s largest builders $1.8 million to settle a potential lawsuit over the construction of a new exhibit hall at the Anaheim Convention Center.

In return, Taylor Woodrow Construction Co. has agreed to fix deficiencies in Exhibit Hall D’s air-conditioning and closed-circuit television systems. City officials said the repairs could cost more than $1 million. Howard Needles Tammen & Bergendoff, the project’s architect, agreed to pay the city $100,000 and help pay for the repairs.

The city two years ago withheld $1.7 million from the firms after accusing them of being six months late and of faulty workmanship in the construction of the $30.6-million exhibit hall. Construction on the hall began in May, 1988, and was completed in July, 1990.

The contract between the city and the firms allowed Anaheim to withhold $5,000 for each day the firms were late in completing the hall, but the companies said they were late because the city had added work to the project after construction began.

After the city withheld its money, the firms filed a counterclaim against it for $8.7 million.

The money will not come from the city’s general budget, but from convention center bonds the city has sold.

“This was a good settlement for both sides,” said Assistant City Manager James Armstrong. “It appeared this case was going to court, and (the city’s) legal costs would have been between $1 million and $2 million. And in these types of cases you don’t receive back your legal fees, even if you win.”

Denis MacDaid, Taylor Woodrow’s president, was out of the country this week, but said in a prepared statement that he was pleased that the settlement was reached through out-of-court negotiations.

“This is a positive way to resolve business disputes without costly litigation,” he said.