Petersen roof replacement could cost as much as $5.6 million

The property and facilities committee of Pitt’s board of trustees approved an estimated $5.6… The property and facilities committee of Pitt’s board of trustees approved an estimated $5.6 million to replace the roof of the Petersen Events Center Wednesday, only three years after the arena’s initial completion.

Pitt alleges that more than 200 holes in the roof of the Petersen Events Center have prompted the construction of a new multi-million dollar roof.

Pitt scheduled the project to begin last week and plans on completing the repairs before the first basketball home game in November.

A statement from Vice Chancellor for Public Affairs Robert Hill said that the replacement is necessary in order to correct problems with leaking and water damage caused by the original roof.

The University and the Pennsylvania Department of General Services filed a lawsuit last winter against the roof’s manufacturers, architects and original contractor.

Pitt alleged that repairs are also necessary for poor wiring throughout the building, troubles with escalators, temperature control problems and pipe failures.

The University also argued that alleged construction and design problems led to inadequate ventilation and problems with the sprinkler and communication systems.

Hill refused to comment on aspects of the construction project that are mentioned in the lawsuit because litigation in the case is still pending.

Several months after Pitt filed its suit, the architecture firms countersued and alleged that Pitt was responsible for the problems associated with the Pete. The architects blamed Pitt for last-minute changes and added features to the building.

A representative of Apostolou Associates — one of the firms involved in the suit — refused to comment on the lawsuit, but documents in the countersuit detail the firm’s complaints against the University and the State.

“The Department of General Services demonstrated that it wanted the cost of the project to be reduced without eliminating items from the design,” the counterclaim stated. “The DGS had an unattainable goal.”

The Post-Gazette reported Thursday that a roofing engineer hired by the building’s architects claimed that 70 percent to 80 percent of roof is fully operational and that the University refused to consider less drastic options before approving plans to replace the entire roof.

Hill responded to those claims in an interview Tuesday.

“The state did not contract for a 70 percent effective roof,” he said. “The roof is not functional and we intend to retrieve the damages in a lawsuit.”

Scott Michaels, the Pete’s general manager, said that the repairs will not affect the inside of the Pete. Michaels added that the gym will remain open and the Pete will continue to house events during the repairs