Wanke, Industrial Commercial and Residential, WP Solutions Suit Ruled on.

 A California appeals court on Thursday found in a trade secrets dispute that a lower court erred in ruling that a stipulated injunction barring former Wanke Industrial Commercial Residential Inc. employees from soliciting some of the waterproofing system-installing company's customers was invalid and couldn't be enforced.

Wanke in 2008 brought a trade secrets suit against former employees Scott Keck and Jacob Bozarth after they started a rival waterproofing business. The parties later entered a settlement in 2009, and the former employees agreed to a stipulated injunction, which prohibited them from soliciting Con Am Management Corp., AV Builders: Saratoga West and anyone else on Wanke's customer list.

The case is Wanke Industrial Commercial Residential Inc. v. Superior Court of San Diego County, case number D058825, and Wanke Industrial Commercial Residential Inc. v. Scott Keck et al., case number D058669, in the California Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District, Division One.

Building Envelope Institute Invites You to Attend 2 Day Seminar in Long Beach

The Building Envelope Institute Invites You to Attend: 

BUILDING ENVELOPE INVESTIGATIONS: 

Standards & Methodology for Investigating Roofing, Waterproofing & Exterior Walls in Residential & Commercial Buildings

Monday December 3, 2012 & Tuesday December 4, 2012 

7:30 AM to 5:00 PM PST

The Grand Long Beach Event Center

4101 E. Willow Street, Long Beach, CA 90815

This program offers continuing education credits for the following groups:13.5 RCI CEU's, 13.5 AIA LU's, and 13.0 CREIA CEC's  

Do you or your firm conduct building envelope investigations on residential and commercial building? 

 Are you ever confused as to what standards are applicable to a building envelope investigation and 

how to apply those standards to various types of residential and commercial building investigations

 (water intrusion analysis, litigation related investigation, course of construction or final inspections, etc.)?                        
          The Building Envelope Institute Invites you to attend our Building Envelope Investigation (roofing,

 exterior wall, and waterproofing) Program on December 3 - 4, 2012.  This two day Building Envelope 

Investigation seminar will walk you through the process of applying industry accepted standards, protocols 

and investigation methodology to the investigation of low-rise (four-stories and less) commercial and

 residential buildings.  

          This program, which will be held at the Grand Long Beach Event Center, is designed to

advance the skills of architects, consultants, inspectors, facility managers and contractors in the 

art of conducting forensic leak investigations on both residential / commercial Type V construction

 buildings. This program will also provide a solid foundation to build on for those new to the 

building envelope investigation field.

         This two-day program, which offers 13.5 AIA LU's and 13.5 RCI CEU's, will run from 

7:30am to 5pm each day.  Each attendee will receive a CD-Rom that includes a copy of

 each PowerPoint presentation and copies of any papers submitted by the presenters.  

 Breakfast and lunch will be provided on each day.   

Register Now

“These dirtbag developers need to be held accountable,” said Michael Carvalho

Ouch, some harsh words from an atttorney representing plaintiff's...

MARIETTA — The homeowners association of the Stillwaters subdivision in west Cobb and eight of its residents have won a $5.2 million lawsuit against the developers of a neighboring development in a fight over stormwater runoff.

Read more: The Marietta Daily Journal - Residents win 5 2M lawsuit vs developers 

Pli_dek Enters Florida Market, Gets Florida Approvals for Fire System and Con Dek

Pli-Dek announced yesterday that their deck systems were approved for Floriida building codes

 and will now be selling through distributors in the state. 

"The Pli-Dek waterproof system for plywood is now approved in Florida! 

Click Here to view our Florida Product Approval!"

 

The Pli-Dek waterproof deck system for plywood substrates has been ICC-ES evaluated since 1980.

 The system utilizes a 2.5 galvanized metal lath and a polyacrylic emulsion base coat, with a wide 

variety of finish options.  All of the systems carry a One-Hour and Class A Fire Rating. 

* Class "A" fire rated
* Less than 1/4 of an inch thick
* Low maintenance
* Cost effective
* City of LA approved
* ADA approved
* Extensive finish options
* Fast drying
* UV resistant
* Base coat installed in 
  framing stage 

For more information on Pli-Dek, see our website at www.deckexpert.com

ExtremeHowTo.com Has a Wakeup Article on Composite Decking Issues

An alert from Google brought up this article on composite decking at www.extremehowto.com.

After reading it, I'd be leary of spending big bucks on decking and labor and finding out it isn't going to last as you expected. 

"Composite materials are one of the fastest growing segments in the building material industry. Just as new technologies have changed the siding and roofing segments of construction, composite materials are charging into the decking arena.

However, today questions and shortcomings are becoming evident in composite decking (C-D). Everything new should and usually does look great, but problem issues surface when composite decking materials are marketed as a universal cure-all to wood's specific problems. Rot, insects, warping, splinters, combustibility, maintenance and environmental concern for treated lumber all play into the sales."   READ MORE AT http://extremehowto.com/a-closer-look-at-composite-decking/

DeckExpert.com strongly urges readers to consider the cons of composite decking against the pro's of solid surface decking systems such as Dex-O-Tex, Westcoat ALX, Desert Crete, DuraDek, Life Deck, Enduro-Kote, Mer-Kote or any of the other Division 7 Pedestrian Traffic Coatings that offer far more. 

Solid surface decking waterproofs the plywood deck and provides a dry area underneath, so it's perfect for decks over living spaces, roof decks, stairs and walkways. Over a properly built frame, the decking with proper maintenance can last up to 30+ years. 

If your considering replacing an old redwood deck or a failed composite deck, consider solid surface decking instead. 

Find a contractor or a manufacturer in our listings at DeckExpert.com. 

  

From Davis-Stirling.com "No Tile on The Balcony" goes to court

From our friends at Davis-Stirling.com comes this juicy unpublished decision...

Respondent Cathedral Hill Tower Condominium Association (the Association) brought this action in 2004 to preclude condominium unit owner Larisa Garbar from installing ceramic tile on her balcony and to compel her to remove unauthorized renovations that violated the Tower's covenants, conditions, and restrictions (CC&Rs).

Cathedral Hill Tower (Tower) is a 25-story, 137-unit building in San Francisco, which was built in 1966 and converted to condominiums in 1982, with the adoption of CC&Rs that incorporate a recorded condominium map.

In May 2001, defendants purchased condominium unit 24D, a one bedroom unit on the Tower's top residential floor.²In June 2001, they began extensive renovations, which included installation of hardwood floors throughout the unit and ceramic tile on the balcony, remodeling of the kitchen and bathroom, removal of the unit's original ceiling, and construction of a raised architectural ceiling.

The Tower had sustained extensive structural damage over the years due to water intrusion. In 2002, the Board retained architect and engineer Jeff Chen to study the problem and recommend a solution. Chen recommended waterproofing the building as soon as possible, and permanent removal of coatings, tile, and other materials from the balcony surface. In June 2003, homeowners approved a $3 million waterproofing project at the Board's urging. The Board retained general contractor Everest Waterproofing and Restoration (Everest) to perform the work, using a waterproofing membrane manufactured by Tremco, and the work began in August 2003.

A dispute arose with Garbar, who sought to retile her balcony after the project's completion. Chen and Everest's president, Keith Goldstein, explained that no tile or other "`overburden' "could be placed over the waterproofing membrane and provided letters from Tremco and Everest stating the warranties would be voided if such material was installed.⁸The Association also presented evidence from Chen that retiling the balcony could compromise the waterproofing.

In addition to this evidence, the Association contended the CC&Rs prohibited balcony tile and thatLamdenprecluded Garbar from objecting to the Board's method of fulfilling its maintenance responsibilities.

Seeking to raise a material issue of fact regarding the Association's claim that retiling would void the warranties, Garbar presented evidence: (1) that the Tremco waterproofing membrane is compatible with tile; and (2) that placement of tile on the balcony surface would not cause leaks or other harm, and, in fact, would provide additional protection. Rabichev, a licensed architect and civil engineer, submitted a declaration in which he stated that Tremco's letter "did not mention anything about tile," and characterized it as "a generic non-specific letter of abstract requirement to conform to manufacture[r] specifications." He construed Tremco's letter to mean "their warranty was only valid when Tremco's specific system of installation was provided . . . ." Rabichev also stated that Chen and Goldstein admitted tile installation was feasible and that they had installed tile over waterproofing, but that Tremco would not warrant the product with tile, and the Board was unwilling to consider other alternatives.⁹

In granting the Association's motion, the trial court cited Article III, section 2.E of the CC&Rs (section 2.E), "which addresses restrictions on the use of balconies." In addition, the trial court found the Association's request to enjoin Garbar from retiling her balcony "is reasonable under [Lamden]" and Article II, section 2.F of the CC&Rs, "as related to the need to maintain the building . . . ."

B.Analysis

As explained more fully below, we agree with the trial court that section 2.E gives the Board discretion to restrict the installation of balcony tile and thatLamdeninsulates this discretionary decision from judicial scrutiny.

1.The CC&Rs Give the Board Discretion to Deny Balcony Tiling.

Read more:Cathedral Hill v. Garbar 
from Davis-Stirling.com by Adams Kessler PLC. If your association needs legal assistance, boards can reach us at (800) 464-2817 or info@davis-stirling.com.