Will The City Get Off In Deutsche Bank Bldg. Investigation?

It has been well over a year since the Deutsche Bank Building erupted into flames while being dismantled. The negligence of so many contributed to the deaths of two firefighters that day in August. Now, as the investigation wraps up, plenty of small fish will go down for their actions, but not everyone. DA Morganthau has been busy since the probe started, but in the end the city will likely get off scot free. If that pisses you off, imagine how the families of the victims feel.

From The NY Daily News:

More than a year later, none of the agencies that were supposed to inspect the tower - including the Fire Department and the Department of Buildings - will be directly implicated, the sources said.

The Graffagnino family's lawyer, John Meringolo, said he still hopes prosecutors "will indict in the interests of justice all culpable parties, no matter how big or how small."

Beddia's sister, Barbara Beddia Crocco, was "devastated" when told this week Morgenthau had decided not to pursue charges the city and state agencies or the general contractor, Bovis Lend Lease, family lawyer Michael Barasch said.

And when called for comment, the DA's office immediately goes for the defensive position.

Dan Castleman, Morgenthau's top deputy, called The News story "premature" and declined to further comment.

The DN highlighted another source that the city has "soverign immunity" which supposedly allows the city to get away with anything because the charges were brought up in the city. So my question is, why not simply go to the next level and make sure that everyone gets the justice they deserve?

2.2 Million Excuses And Counting

That is the amount of money that the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation is spending (along with the city) to retain outside legal help in the aftermath of the Deutsche Bank Building fire. More than six months after the blaze that claimed the lives of two firefighters, much remains to be answered. The funds are being used to help those that are being targeted by D.A. Robert Morganthau which sounds normal, but where are the funds coming from?

From The NY Times:

Michael Murphy, a spokesman for the development agency, said it would seek to recover the costs of the outside legal counsel through insurance policies on the project, and through claims stemming from its contract with Bovis.

But other potential costs — and more work for the outside lawyers — loom.

As the Times points out, those costs include lawsuits from the victims' families and ultimately more legal fees. Regardless, Murphy says that the money could possibly come from the insurance companies but are they really going to part with millions in compensation? Out of all the experience I've had with recovering insurance money....I'm going to take a small leap and deduce that the taxpayers of New York will ultimately pay for the legal fees and especially for the demolition. Unless of course someone can convince me otherwise.

Trump Contractor, Dept Of Buildings Could (And Should) Be In Serious Trouble

What happened on Monday at the Trump SoHo construction site is a terrible tragedy that should have been avoided. Building violations, a ridiculous and unsafe speed of construction and the aura of the Donald has resulted in the death of what friends and co-workers describe as a smiling, happy worker and a good-natured father. Instead of this Ukrainian immigrant working for his slice of the American dream, it was lost due to the greed that surrounds Donald Trump.

From The Gothamist:

The tragic death of a construction worker at the Trump Soho building has put the spotlight on the spotty history of a contractor on the project. On Monday afternoon, a worker, Yuriy Vanchytskyy (pictured below), fell 42 stories to his death when the molds he and other workers were pouring concrete into broke, causing a collapse into lower floors.

The NY Times notes that another worker, also working for subcontractor DiFama Concrete, died when he fell 60 feet at the site of a Midtown building in 2004. Since then, the Brooklyn-based company has been "repeatedly cited for serious safety violations by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration," with 11 of 17 federal violations being "described as serious."

The Daily News has photographs from the roof (pictured) right after the collapse and reports that the Department of Buildings found the wooden forms "did not meet industry standards." Staffers from the Manhattan DA's office were seen at the building site, 246 Spring Street - apparently DA Robert Morgenthau is monitoring the city's investigation.

Obviously the Department of Buildings isn't up to do it's job. If the Manhattan DA's office has to step in, you know there's a whole lotta shit going on in the DoB that needs to be aired out for all to see. Councilman Avella is out for blood, particularly that of Patricia Lancaster who runs the DoB who did not issue a stop-work order. I wish that ugly piece of crap was never built. It has been a stain on SoHo since it was sketched out and now it is cursed as well.