HomeMy WebLinkAboutStaff Report 212-07City of Palo Alto
City Manager’s Report
TO:HONORABLE CITY COUNCIL
FROM:CITY MANAGER DEPARTMENT: PLANNING AND
COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENT
DATE:APRIL 16, 2007 CMR: 212:07
SUBJECT: MENLO EQUITIES PROJECT AT 260 HOMER AVENUE
This is an informational report and no Council action is required.
BACKGROUND
This informational report has been prepared in response to the oral communications Council
received on April 3, 2007 from Dr. Frank Altick, owner of the dental building adjacent to the
Menlo Equities project at 260 Homer Avenue. The concern expressed by Dr. Altick involved an
underground shoring system used by Menlo Equities in the construction of their basement
parking garage.
The project at 260 Homer Avenue is being developed by Menlo Equities and involves
construction of a new multi-story mixed-use building with two levels of underground parking
that connects to an existing single level underground garage to the south that was built by the
Palo Alto Housing Corporation as part of their affordable housing project. The excavation for
the 260 Homer project is greater than 30’ deep. To protect the w0rksite and adjacent properties
and public fights-of-way, Menlo Equities’ contractor, Webcor, designed and installed a shoring
system consisting of drilled steel piles that frame wood lagging, which are then secured with a
series of horizontally drilled anchoring devices or "tiebacks". The tiebacks consist of roughly 8"
diameter holes in which reinforcing steel is placed and are then filled with a cement/grout
mixture. The length of the tiebacks varies between 10 and 20 feet. This shoring system was
designed by a structural engineer employed by the subcontractor working for Webcor who then
installed the shoring system.
Plans for the shoring system were submitted to Public Works to check for any utility conflicts in
the public fights-of-way. They were not submitted to the Building Division, nor were they
required to be. It has been the past practice of the Building Division not to require the
submission or approval of shoring plans as they are not considered a part of the building and
there are no codes against which they can be checked or that apply. Rather, they are considered
to be a contractor method for securing the site in order to comply with applicable workplace
safety (OSHA) regulations and Civil Code requirements that pertain to the protection of
properties adjacent to excavations.
CMR: 212:07 Page 1 of 3
The Street Work Permit issued by Public Works provided the authority for the contractor to
install the tie-backs in the public fights-of-way. For excavations of this type, this is a commonly
used method of shoring.
DISCUSSION
In late February, Dr. Altick contacted the City to question whether any approvals had been
granted to allow for construction activity to occur on his property. He was responding to a
contact made by someone working on behalf of Webcor who told him that it was necessary for
some work to be performed on his property. At that time, the building plans for 260 Homer
were checked and it was verified that there was nothing on the approved plans indicating work
beyond the property lines. On or about March 12, 2007, Dr. Altick again contacted the City to
express concerns about the tie-backs that he saw being installed underneath his property. He
inquired whether the City had granted permission for this work to which he was told "no." A
City Building Inspector was then dispatched to the site on March 14, 2007, and a Stop Work
Order was issued on that date to allow for an opportunity to understand what was being done and
under whose authority. Prior to this time, there were no inspections of the project by the City as
none had been scheduled nor were any required.
On March 21, 2007, a meeting was convened by the Planning Director with Dr. Altick and his
representatives and two representatives of Menlo Equities. At the conclusion of the meeting,
Menlo Equities agreed to provide Dr. Altick with information pertaining to the shoring system
design, the project geotechnical report, and to allow for an inspection of the job site by Dr.
Altick’s own structural engineer. Menlo Equities further agreed to repair any obvious damage
caused to Dr. Altick’s building by their construction and to provide reimbursement to Dr. Altick
for the cost of employing additional experts to review the plans, reports and construction on his
behalf. On March 23 a meeting was held at the job site with representatives of Menlo Equities,
Webcor, several sub-contractors and Dr. Altick’s structural engineer. At the end of the meeting,
several individuals, including Dr. Altick’s structural engineer, went down into the excavation to
inspect the shoring system along the common boundary between Dr. Altick’s property and 260
Homer. Since then, the City has received copies of various correspondences between Dr.
Altick’s representatives and Menlo Equities, which appear to indicate continuing
communications between both sides in an effort to settle their differences. On March 22, 2007,
the City’s Stop Work Order was lifted in its entirety.
This issue is governed by Civil Code Section 832 which prohibits an adjacent owner from
undermining the property they are next to. Essentially this is a civil dispute between the two
neighboring property owners and largely outside of the City’s jurisdiction. The parties will
need to work this problem out between themselves.
We will be creating a working group to coordinate between Public Works, Planning and
Building to determine if the City needs to alter its approach to excavations that affect the public
right of way. However, our review of these circumstances reveals that the City acted properly
when presented by this neighbor to neighbor dispute.
CMR: 212:07 Page 2 of 3
PREPARED BY:
STEVE
Director of Planning & Community Environment
CITY MANAGER APPROVAL:
EMILY HARRISON
Assistant City Manager
COURTESY COPIES:
Jane Vaughn, Menlo Equities
Dr. Frank Altick
CMR: 212:07 Page 3 of 3