City sues porch owner

Associated Press ^ | 7-2-03 | MAURA KELLY

[JustPiper]

The city filed a lawsuit today against the owners and managers of the apartment building where 13 people died in a weekend porch collapse, arguing that the porch was too big, built with the wrong materials and lacked the proper construction permit.

The city asked for hundreds of thousands of dollars in penalties.

Also today, hundreds of friends and family members attended funerals for several of the victims, remembering them as kind, caring and helpful.

According to the city's lawsuit, the porch jutted out 11 feet from the building -- 1 foot more than is allowed under city codes. It also was 81 square feet larger than the 150 square feet allowed, the city argued.

The complaint also alleged the three-story apartment building was illegally converted from five units to three.

The city asked for a court order requiring immediate replacement of the porch and is seeking up to $500 a day for each violation, which could total hundreds of thousands of dollars because the porch was built in 1998.

``Until there's a porch system, nobody can live there because there's no back exits and entrances,'' said Jennifer Hoyle, city Law Department spokeswoman.

The Law Department filed the complaint in Housing Court against management company LG Properties; Philip Pappas, president of LG Properties; Restoration Specialists LLC; Thomas Libby, mortgagee of the premises; and George Koutroumos, the contractor who built the porch.

Pappas is scheduled to return on Thursday from a trip to Canada, according to a woman who answered the phone Tuesday at LG Properties. LG Properties today referred calls to Mike Aufrecht, an attorney for Pappas, who would not talk to a reporter from The Associated Press. However, he had a receptionist who would not give her name read a brief statement.

``We have already given all information that we have to the press and we await Mr. Pappas' return for futher comment,'' the woman said.

The city is investigating whether the porch was overloaded when it collapsed about 12:30 a.m. Sunday during a party at the apartment building in Lincoln Park, an affluent neighborhood popular with young professionals.

About 50 people -- most in their early 20s -- were on a third-floor porch when it fell, causing a chain reaction that sent porches on the second and first floor plummeting to the basement.

Seven men and six women died, most of them crushed on the lower porches. At least 57 people were injured.

Officials issued a permit in 1998 to LG Properties to install furnaces, air conditioners and water heaters at the building -- but not a porch, the city said.

Police have said they do not plan to file criminal charges.

The Buildings Department is inspecting 42 other buildings owned or managed by Pappas and LG Properties, but the results were not available Wednesday, said Breelyn Pete, spokeswoman for the Buildings Department.

In Evansville, Ind., today, 25-year-old Margaret Haynie was recognized for her calm demeanor and bright smile. She had worked at Bank One for three years.

``She was always there to help people out,'' said her boss and mentor, Marsha Cruzan.

``She was known to pull all-nighters to get the work done and she loved doing it.'' In Winnetka, Phil Borhis remembered 19-year-old Shea Fitzgerald, a lineman at Northern Illinois University.

``We lost a great football player, but we also lost a good person and a good friend to the players,'' said Borhis, head athletic trainer at NIU.

Zack Domont, 20, of Glencoe, grew up with Fitzgerald.

``He was a gentle giant. His size looked overpowering but if you knew him he was a kind and caring guy,'' Domont said.

Claire Blumenthal described Muhammed Hameeduddin, 25, an actuary from Chicago, as delightful and considerate.

``He was brilliant. He was a delightful young man who was looking forward with great anticipation for doing for his family,'' she said.

[sam_paine]

Hey Civvy. A gEEk brother, here. What is the rough load capacity of a 8" CMU wall, filled with concrete and rebar? And how much deflection is allowed in 2nd floor joists that span 30ft? Do I have to look these up in local building codes, or is there a general web reference that's handy?

[TaxRelief]

Some shots of the porch before the city destroyed the evidence:

[CdMGuy]

All you have to do is see a photo of the underside of one of the upper floors and it is quite clear that there was insufficient support beams. Even so, I can't understand why so many people would walk out onto these porches. It had to be apparent that there were too many people standing on them. There was a real lack of common sense on the part of the partygoers.