Construction on Ogden’s Historic 25th Street at standstill since March due to safety issue

OGDEN — It’s all about that wood. It’s supposed to be fire-retardant treated, but it’s not. That’s why construction remains at a standstill here in downtown Ogden, ever since last March.

It’s a big enough concern that the building is under surveillance, including fire-detection systems, cameras, and very soon to have in-person monitoring.

The developer, Summa Terra Ventures says they planned with the contractor to put in the required fire-retardant-treated wood, but somewhere down the line, the contractor switched that out.

The developer says they’ve been diligently working to come up with a plan to fix the problem and get the building back to well above the required safety standards.

The initial plan was denied by city inspectors. They now have another plan under review that the city says they’re working hard to expedite.

“I don’t know how it got to the point that it is. I don’t know what happened on their side. I do know on the plans that were approved and permitted by the city did have the requirement of the fire retardant treated lumber.”

Worst case, the city can demolish the building if a workable solution isn’t reached, but they say nobody wants that.

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Full Summa Terra statement:

Summa Terra ventures entered into a contractual agreement with the general contractor, makers line, for the construction of the union walk project situated on the historically designated 25th street in Ogden. The architectural services of AE Urbia were duly retained to formulate project plans in accordance with the prevailing national building code and local ordinances of Ogden City. These plans underwent a comprehensive submission, review, official stamping, and subsequent approval by the Ogden City building department.

Subsequently, and without the knowledge or consent of Summa Terra ventures, the property’s ownership, and Ogden City, makers line unilaterally made the decision to substitute fire-treated lumber, as originally prescribed in the contract, the approved building plans, and the prevailing national building code, with untreated lumber. This deviation from established protocols constituted a breach of makers line’s contractual obligations to the owner and a violation of the approved building plans and pertinent building regulations

Upon discovering this deviation from the prescribed standards, Summa Terra ventures promptly initiated remedial actions. Beginning in late March of the present year, concerted and vigorous efforts were undertaken in collaboration with Ogden City and the project’s architect to rectify this manifestly improper alteration and to reinstate the project on a compliant trajectory.

A comprehensive set of revised construction drawings was duly submitted to Ogden City on August 15, 2023. Ogden City responded on September 11, 2023, with specific notations and corrections that necessitated due attention and resubmission. In accordance with these directives, the requisite redline revisions were duly submitted on September 27, 2023. Presently, we await the approval and guidance of Ogden City to address and rectify the issues that precipitated the cessation of construction and the declaration of the building as unsafe.

Since the issuance of the stop-work order by Ogden City, the premises have been diligently secured. Initially, this was accomplished through the engagement of live personnel who maintained an active fire watch. Subsequently, a state-of-the-art fire detection and prevention system, pre-approved by the Ogden City Fire Department, was installed to ensure continued vigilance and safety measures on the premises.

Mike Watson CEO