Jamestown City Council voting session (April 24, 2023)

Jamestown City Council has approved a settlement to end litigation between the City and the company hired to renovate Tracy Plaza.

The City of Jamestown hired Patterson-Stevens in 2017 to renovate Tracy Plaza, which sits above and also serves as the roof for the city police and fire departments along with the city parking garage.

A lawsuit seeking $2 million was filed in February 2019 by the city and New York Municipal Insurance Reciprocal, claiming Patterson-Stevens Inc. was responsible for not properly securing the area, which allowed rain water to damage the police and fire departments below.

That lawsuit was settled in September 2020.

Patterson-Stevens counter-sued the city for breech of contract in July 2020, claiming the city owed over $306,000 in back payment for work that was done at Tracy Plaza in 2018.

The settlement approved Monday night has the City paying Patterson-Stevens $155,000 with Patterson-Stevens paying the city $75,000. Corporation Counsel Elliot Raimondo said this ends all litigation between the city and Patterson-Stevens.

Council also approved lifting the hiring freeze to allow an Ombudsman to be hired. This position replaces the Associate Corporation Counsel position. The ombudsman will perform human resource duties in the Corporation Counsel’s office.

A resolution also was approved to purchase new finance and payroll software from Springbrook using $106,286 in American Rescue Plan funds. This software will replace the KVS system with the administration saying the upgrade will result in time-savings for staff.

Jamestown City Hall on Third St. is surrounded by Tracy Plaza, which is undergoing another renovation phase following action by the Jamestown City Council on April 27, 2015.

Jamestown City Council will vote on a settlement to end litigation between the City and the company hired to renovate Tracy Plaza.

The City of Jamestown hired Patterson-Stevens in 2017 to renovate Tracy Plaza, which sits above and also serves as the roof for the city police and fire departments along with the city parking garage.

A lawsuit was filed in February 2019 by the city and New York Municipal Insurance Reciprocal, claiming Patterson-Stevens Inc. was responsible for not properly securing the area, which allowed rain water to pour into the police station during a heavy rain storm in September 2017.

The lawsuit sought $2 million in damages.

According to State Supreme Court filings, on September 11, 2020, that lawsuit was discontinued by both parties.

However, a few months earlier on July 17, 2020, Patterson-Stevens sued the city for breech of contract, claiming the city owed over $306,000 in back payment for work that was done at Tracy Plaza in 2018.

The lawsuit also claimed that former Jamestown Mayor Sam Teresi had said the departments were susceptible to water damage and flooding even before work began.

According to the lawsuit, Patterson-Stevens said, “The City has breached the contract by delaying the start of the project, issuing an improper stop work order, interfering with Patterson-Stevens’ performance of the contract, improperly withholding payment or failing to pay or reject invoices as required by the Contract, and improperly delaying completion of the project well beyond the June 30, 2018 completion date.”

The settlement has the City paying Patterson-Stevens $155,000 with Patterson-Stevens paying the city $75,000. The resolution filed said the agreement would “discontinue the litigation and resolve the matter.”

Jamestown City Hall on Third St. is surrounded by Tracy Plaza.

MAYVILLE – The contractor that was hired by the city of Jamestown to oversee Phase 2 of the renovation work on Tracy Plaza is suing the city for breech of contract. Specifically, Patterson-Stevens Inc., based out of Tonawanda, is claiming the city owes over $306,000 in back payment for work that was done at Tracy Plaza in 2018.

The lawsuit alleging the breech of contract was filed in Chautauqua County State Supreme Court on Friday, July 17.

According to the lawsuit, the city entered into a contract with Patterson-Stevens in July 2017 to oversee Phase 2 renovation work of Tracy Plaza, which included the replacement of the plaza deck, which also serves as a roof over the Jamestown Police Department and City Fire Department. The initial contract called for a payment of $1,534,864 to the firm, with two additional change orders bringing the final tally to $1,645,689.

Funding for the Tracy Plaza renovation project came primarily from a $1.48 million New York State Green Innovation Grant.

However, in September 2017, a strong rain storm swept over the city and led to significant flooding of the city police department. According city officials, the flooding caused damage to city equipment, files, computers and radios. The main entrance to the police department also had to be closed to the public for months. Then in September 2018, city officials claimed additional damage was done to the Jamestown Fire Department when rain water pored into the interior as a result of the ongoing renovation work.

In both instances, City officials claimed Patterson-Stevens Inc. was at fault for the water damage. In February 2019 the city, through its insurance company, filed a lawsuit in Chautauqua County Supreme Court against Patterson-Stevens, seeking $2 million in payment due to the water damage that took place. That case is still ongoing and has yet to be settled.

In the counter-lawsuit filed Friday by Patterson-Stevens, the contracting firm claims former Jamestown Mayor Sam Teresi had said the departments were susceptible to water damage and flooding even before work began.

“Tracy Plaza was in desperate need of repair because, as the City’s Mayor said to Spectrum News on January 4, 2017, the plaza ‘has literally been deteriorating and leaking since day one when the building opened back in 1970,'” it said in its legal complaint.

The firm also claims the city delayed the start of the project in the summer of 2017 by at least one month. It also says that it undertook efforts to protect the surface below the plaza deck from water and moisture, including the installation of a temporary roof. But in April 2018, the city issued a stop work order for the project and ordered Patterson-Stevens to remove the temporary roof. As a result, the firm claims that any damage that was done after April 2018 was due to the city’s improper stop work order. The city then withheld payments to the firm for work that was already done or which continued to take place.

According to the lawsuit, Patterson-Stevens says, “The City has breached the contract by delaying the start of the project, issuing an improper stop work order, interfering with Patterson-Stevens’ performance of the contract, improperly withholding payment or failing to pay or reject invoices as required by the Contract, and improperly delaying completion of the project well beyond the June 30, 2018 completion date.”

Due to its claim, Patterson Stevens says it has suffered monetary damages in the amount of at least $306,048. It is asking the court to not only order the release of the payment, but also pay any interest, attorneys’ fees, costs, and disbursements, along with any further relief as the court deems necessary and proper.

The city and New York Municipal Insurance Reciprocal filed the suit against Patterson-Stevens Inc. in an attempt to recoup an estimated $2 million in damages.

Patterson-Stevens Inc. was hired to renovate Tracy Plaza, which sits above and also serves as the roof for the city police and fire departments along with the city parking garage.

The city and its insurance carrier claim Patterson-Stevens Inc. was responsible for not properly securing the area, which allowed rain water to pour into the police station during a heavy rain storm in September 2017.

Because the lawsuit was only filed this past week, no date has been set as to when the next court action will take place.

Jamestown City Hall on Third St. is surrounded by Tracy Plaza, which is undergoing another renovation phase following action by the Jamestown City Council on April 27.

JAMESTOWN – The City of Jamestown is experiencing more leaking roof problems at City Hall.

On Monday night during the Jamestown City Council work session it was learned that a portion of the Fire Department – located below Tracy Plaza at City Hall – has been damaged due to rain water leaking into the area. Officials believe the leak is the result of construction that is currently underway at the Plaza.

The leak was discovered near the start of this month and city officials say the general contractor for the project – Patterson-Stevens, was responsible for the leak. Officials have also said the contractor is to blame for another leak that broke out a year ago at the Jamestown Police Headquarters – also underneath Tracy Plaza. While that problem has been remediated, the police station remains closed to the public.

During Monday’s work session, city councilman Andrew Liuzzo asked why no one is monitoring the work conditions and was informed by city public works director Jeff Lehman that Greenman Pederson Inc. has been hired and is responsible for on-site inspections, but added that it is sometimes difficult to predict where water leaks may occur.

The Tracy Plaza renovation is the result of a $1.48 million state grant the city received in 2016 as part of Phase 2 of the renovation effort. Six years ago the city began looking into renovating the plaza, which hadn’t seen any major work since it was first built in the early 1970s.

Repair work continues at the Jamestown Police Department on E. Second St., nearly six months after flooding resulted in widespread damage.

JAMESTOWN The Jamestown City Council took action Monday night on three resolutions involving work to the Jamestown Police Department to address damages that were done during a flooding incident last year.

The council approved an agreement with LaBella Associates of Jamestown as part of police department Emergency Repairs Phase 2 Project for an amount not to exceed $29,9000. In addition, the council approved an agreement with Empire Development of Mayville for the Spraying and Insulation of the Deck above the Department for a cost not to exceed $34,000. The council also approved a change order resolution of $1,774 to Empire Development for emergency repair work that it had previously authorized.

The action on Monday night is expected to help inch the project closer to the finish line.

“It’s tough with projected timelines because the a lot of thing, like the addition of the insulation, has slowed it down, I would guess for about a week. But we are working on getting phase 1 completed so we can open the doors back up to the public,” Police Chief Harry Snelling told WRFA following Monday night’s meeting.

As the work continues to take place to repair the flooding damage, Snellings also acknowledged the entire process has had some impact on the operations of his department.

“We adjusted from the initial day of the flood. We had to relocate our records bureau and our investigative section, and then our dispatch center as the flooding continued over the next couple days. In fact the entire department is located in the back break room / emergency operations center. In fact the only office that’s functioning in the regular PD is mine. I’m the only one that’s kind of stayed there the whole time,” Snellings said.

City officials say the general contractors working on the Tracy Plaza reconstruction project — Patterson-Stevens Inc. — was responsible for not properly securing the area, which allowed rain water to pour into the police station during a heavy rain storm in September. City Officials and insurance representatives are tracking the cost of the repair work and expect the contractor to pay for the entire cost of the work.

According to the Jamestown Post-Journal, the general contractors working on the Tracy Plaza reconstruction project — Patterson-Stevens Inc. — did not properly secure the area, which allowed rain water to pour into the police station, which is located directly underneath the plaza. As a result, there has been damage to equipment, files, computers and radios.

Mayor Sam Teresi called it a complete a complete disruption to the police department with a lot of damage in the basement offices. The water was ankle deep or higher. He said the extent of the damages and cost is not yet known, but in-house legal staff and the city’s insurance company has been working on documenting all the damage done.

City workers from the Parks and Public Works department, building management services, and outside contractors were called to assist with the cleanup and restoration.

In July, Jamestown City Council approved Patterson-Stevens Inc. of Tonawanda for general construction for $1,535,000 for the Tracy Plaza renovation project. The vast majority of that money to cover the cost of the project comes from a state grant.

Jamestown Police Captain Robert Samuelson sent out a media release Friday morning stating that the police department will be closed to the public until further notice. Anyone wanting to contact police for non-emergency matters should call 483-7536 or 483-7522 and they will be given alternate access to the building. All emergency calls should still be made by calling 911.