Billionaire Jeff Greene is hitting back at the general contractor previously overseeing his One West Palm mixed-use project.
Greene’s development entity 1370 South Ocean on July 29 countersued Coral Gables-based Kast Construction in Palm Beach County Circuit Court. Greene’s complaint alleges Kast mismanaged construction of the planned $3 billion two-tower complex at 550 South Quadrille Boulevard in West Palm Beach.
Kast attempted to get the upper hand in the construction dispute by filing its lawsuit against Greene’s entity in late June, Greene’s complaint alleges. “They say the best defense is a good offense,” Greene’s lawsuit states. “Kast tried to gain some kind of strategic and tactical advantage by rushing to the courthouse to be the proverbial plaintiff.”
Attorneys for Kast and Greene did not respond to requests for comment. In a previous interview, Greene told The Real Deal that he fired Kast after the general contractor allegedly delayed completion of One West Palm by three years, when the project was supposed to have been finished in 2021. Greene has a net worth of $7.5 billion according to Forbes.
In the counterclaim, Greene said Kast was terminated due to “repeated breaches of its duties as construction manager,” including overcharging for key employees by 60 percent or more; charging for fees without prior approval; and theft of construction supplies, including two-way radios and tools, worth tens of thousands of dollars.
Kast also caused costly mistakes such as approving a subcontractor’s drawings for elevators with 8-foot openings, when the actual elevators for the project required 7-foot openings, the countersuit alleges.
After terminating Kast, Greene said he hired Bluewater Builders of West Palm Beach to take over construction of One West Palm, which he anticipates will be completed by the end of the year or mid-2025.
Rising 30 stories each, the project’s two towers will have a combined 328 apartments, 201 hotel rooms and 200,000 square feet of office space.
Greene paid $10 million for the 3.3-acre development site in 2014, and two years later he won zoning changes to the land that increased the height from 10 stories to 30 stories.
In its June lawsuit, Kast alleges Greene is responsible for the construction schedule exceeding 36 months and resulting in $2.4 million in extra fees.
Greene “improperly initiated and failed to timely provide full and timely direction” for “extensive changes to the design and materials” of One West Palm, the lawsuit states. He also “improperly failed and refused to resolve disputes with trade contractors, which caused delays” to the project’s schedule, Kast alleges.
The construction firm is seeking more than $4 million in damages.