Construction, repairs proceed at accident site

Repairs are still under way six months later at two office buildings damaged in a fatal construction-crane accident in downtown Bellevue.

Meanwhile, construction at Tower 333, the office development where the crane was located, resumed within two months of the accident and is on track for completion by early next year, said Michael Brennan, deputy director of development services with the city of Bellevue.

The falling crane forced businesses at the Plaza 305 building to relocate, although at least one of the businesses, Pacific Continental Bank, says it hopes to move back in the next few months.

At Civica Office Commons, temporary fixes allowed businesses to return to their offices shortly after the Nov. 16 accident.

Now, owner Brickman Associates of New York must make permanent repairs, said Dan Ivanoff, managing investment partner at Schnitzer Northwest, Civica's developer and a tenant at the office complex.

"I think it's going to be a long, drawn-out, painful deal," he said, referring to upcoming repairs on exterior-wall panels. "When they start tearing panels off, we'll have a hole in our wall again."

Brickman Associates, which bought Civica last year for a record $575 a square foot, or $175.7 million, declined to comment.

The 210-foot crane had been working on Tower 333, a 20-story office building under construction at 108th Avenue Northeast and Northeast Fourth Street, when it collapsed. The crane's tower ripped the northeast corner of Plaza 305 and smashed windows at one of two Civica buildings.

The long front end of the crane's horizontal boom swung across 108th and tore into three apartments in the Pinnacle BellCentre apartment complex, killing a 31-year-old Microsoft attorney.

Repairs to Pinnacle BellCentre were completed in late March, said Tom Mierzwinski, a spokesman at San Francisco-based BRE Properties, the building's owner.

The accident raised widespread concerns about the safety of construction projects — downtown Seattle and Bellevue are in the middle of a building boom, with more than 50 major projects under construction — and it recently resulted in stricter regulations of cranes in Washington state.

The new law, signed by Gov. Christine Gregoire last month, requires the state Department of Labor and Industries to create a certification program for cranes. Requirements will include inspections and regular testing.

Also, crane operators must have up to 2,000 hours of experience to be certified, and apprentice operators must work under certified supervisors. The law takes effect Jan. 1, 2010, to give the crane industry and state regulators time to adjust.

Information from The Associated Press was included in this story.

Amy Martinez: 206-464-2923 or amartinez@seattletimes.com