Crane Placing Heavy Equipment Atop Tower Presents Navigation
Hazard
San Diego's Sunroad
Enterprises hasn't let a "no" from the FAA impede its current plan
to complete its 12-story office, 180-foot
building near Montgomery Field.
In fact, Sunroad has been on the receiving end of five denials
for requests for permission to use a crane and a helicopter to
place heavy equipment on top of the office tower, reports the San
Diego Union Tribune.
"We're not going to allow additional increases in the height of
a building that we already determined is a hazard to air
navigation, even if those increases would be temporary," said FAA
spokesman Ian Gregor.
The FAA declared Sunroad's 180-foot-tall building a hazard back
in August because it exceeds the agency's 160-foot height
limit.
Planes that fly into Montgomery Field with low clouds or high
wind, about 15 percent of annual landings, must circle within 400
feet of the building.
Although the FAA does not have jurisdiction over land-use
decisions outside the airport proper, it can control what Sunroad
does in the sky above the building.
Sunroad first asked to erect a crane on top of the building
January 30, 2007. Two more rejections for cranes came within weeks
of the applications. A fourth request for a crane was filed Monday
and was denied Thursday.
On February 8, the FAA cited the city's stop-work order when it
denied Sunroad's request to use a helicopter to lift the equipment
to the top of the building.
The FAA's denials have slowed,
but have not stopped building progress; the company has found other
ways to install some of the equipment essential to finishing the
building.
The air-conditioning and heating units and elevator components
are being dismantled and hauled to the roof on a small construction
elevator, where they are then reassembled.
"Disassembling those components is an expensive and
time-consuming chore," said Tom Story, Sunroad's vice president of
development. "But that appears to be the only option available to
us."
Story said his company will hold the city liable for the
expense, which he estimates will run into the tens of thousands of
dollars.
The Sunroad project has sparked heated exchanges between City
Attorney Michael Aguirre and city officials over his attempts to
force the developer to comply with FAA safety standards.
Additionally, Aguirre filed a lawsuit to force Sunroad to take
down the top two floors, maintaining that the building is a public
nuisance. Sunroad countersued for $40 million, saying it abided by
construction permits issued by the City.
Those permits were issued before the FAA was made aware of the
building and declared it a hazard. City building officials assert
they had no indication before the FAA's declaration that a tall
building near the airport would be dangerous.
The city ordered Sunroad to stop work on the top 20 feet of the
building in October, 2006, until the FAA's safety concerns could be
addressed. A modified stop-work order has been ignored by
Sunroad.
ANN's Daily Aero-Linx (04.13.24)
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