A lot of planning has to go into getting a building constructed. When you hire contractors to plan the project and get it going, the last thing that you want to happen is to find out that there are issues with the building.
The foundation is one important consideration, especially in California, where earthquakes are a constant threat to structures. Think about what residents of Millennium Tower, a high-rise residential building in San Francisco are going through. They have found out that their building is sinking and leaning.
In fact, the building is tilting so much that it is called the “leaning tower.” The building was constructed in 2008. Since then, it has sunk 17 inches and is leaning 14 inches. Some units have cracks and gaps in the wall that people worry will make them unsafe if a fire breaks out. Still, the authorities have deemed the building safe for habitation.
The developers assert that the issue isn’t their fault. They are blaming nearby projects that have broken ground. One theory is that there was too much water removed from the ground in the area, which caused the sand beneath the high-rise building to compress. A report produced on the situation notes that the foundation is the issue causing the building to lean.
Regardless of the issue that caused the building to lean, the fact remains that multimillion dollar condos aren’t in good shape. Some current and former residents have taken legal action over the issue. It will be interesting to keep an eye on this construction defect case and see where the blame ultimately falls.
Source: Business Insider, “A 58-story skyscraper in San Francisco is tilting and sinking — and residents say their multimillion-dollar condos are ‘nearly worthless’,” Melia Robinson, Sep. 13, 2017