A Brooklyn trial court judge has dismissed the architect of One Grand Army Plaza, branded as Richard Meier on Prospect Park, from a $200 million lawsuit.
The condo board of the 15-story residential condominium on the edge of Prospect Park at Flatbush Avenue had accused the Park Avenue architecture firm Stephen B. Jacobs Group — who worked alongside starchitect Richard Meier on the project — of breach of contract after supposedly failing to provide amenities listed in an offering and improperly constructing luxury units.
Filed in September 2012, the suit claims that the building’s amenities and construction quality were intentionally misrepresented in order to sell units quickly, according to Law360. The plaintiffs specifically assert that the developer never installed a roof-mounted maintenance system intended to operate the building’s exterior floor-to-ceiling glass curtain wall system. The curtain system has since deteriorated and the building’s roof has been rendered “unsalvageable,” according to the complaint. The replacement cost is estimated at $2 million or more.
However, Judge Yvonne Lewis ruled that the architect was not a party to a 2003 agreement between the building’s board and its developers and sponsors to prepare a certification and description of the property that was included in an offering plan.
“This was a trumped-up case,” Jacobs told Law360. “We had nothing to do with this.”
Yet the condo board’s lawyer said that an appeal is possible and that Jacobs is likely to be brought back into the suit as a third-party defendant. [Law360] –Christopher Cameron