The Colusa Casino Resort of California will be paid $20 million by the Hunt Construction Group, after a settlement was reached as part of a five year lawsuit over shoddy construction work of the casino venue. Hunt Construction Group is owned by AECOM, while the casino is owned and operated by the Cachil Dehe Band of Wintun Indians.
The both the tribe and the construction group went to trail back in January after the lawsuit had dragged on for several years. It would take two and a half months before Hunt Construction, SOSH Architects and subcontractors would agree to a settlement which covered several elements of construction regarding the casino hotel and two restaurants.
Dan Steinberg of Trainor Fairbrook represented the tribe in the case, stating that the tribe wanted the right thing to happen, with Hunt stepping up and taking responsibility, which the group finally did, according to comments in BizJournals.
It was in 2004 that Hunt and Sosh Architects was hired by the tribe to build a hotel that would offer guest rooms for those who wanted to enjoy an extended stay at the casino. The two companies were also tasked with creating a warehouse and two restaurants. The construction of the buildings was completed in 2005.
Some five years later, the windows began to leak and the construction company denied responsibility. Hunts stated that the window problem was a warranty issue and not a defect. The tribe investigated the problem further and found that there were several safety and structural problems with the hotel and restaurants. The roof and walls of the hotel would leak and fire sprinklers had not been installed properly. Further investigation revealed that several elements of construction did not meet the building code.
The hotel was subsequently shut down in 2010 and Poelman Construction Ltd was brought in by 2011 to repair the issues. It would take another year before the hotel would reopen in 2012. During 2011, the tribe filed the lawsuit against Hunt and SOSH and mediation began over the next year. It would take four years of mediation before a settlement of $20 million would finally be reached this year.