Widely praised for its amazing green-building-ness at the time of its completion in December 2000, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s Merrill Environmental Center has been plagued with water intrusion problems from the day it opened. The leaks were so bad that claims were eventually brought against the architect, contractor, and the supplier of the engineered wood structural members that hold the building up. The owner settled claims against the architect and contractor and the three then banded together and brought a lawsuit against an engineered lumber manufacturer for damages in excess of $6 million, equal to the construction budget of the building. The lawsuit contends that:
“As a result of Plaintiffs’ reliance on [the manufacturer’s] assurances that Parallams pressure-treated with PolyClear 2000 was appropriate material for use in construction of the project and that the preservative had been adequately applied—which statements were untrue—the structural integrity of the project is in jeopardy and the building is now at risk of collapse. Thus, the defective condition of the PolyClear 2000 has created a clear risk of death or serious injury at the project.”