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The developer who turned an abandoned factory into upscale residential lofts in Canandaigua has filed suit against that city, claiming a malfunctioning sanitary sewer system damaged the apartments.
243 Gorham Street, LLC, the development entity owned by Don Lasher and Ken Desrosiers, alleges in court papers filed Aug. 18 in state Supreme Court in Ontario County that an influx of stormwater into the city’s outdated sewer system caused the toilets and floor drains to back up, flooding the building with 1 1/2 to 2 inches of water from the sewer system.
The 20 units and furnishings in Building 3 were damaged during rainstorms of Oct. 26 and Oct. 29 of 2021, first by the sewage water backup, then by the residual effects of subsequent changes in humidity and the remediation efforts to reduce the risk of mold growth, court papers say.
The developer is seeking to recover just over $552,000, the invoiced cost for water damage restoration, cleanup and repairs, as well as ongoing restoration efforts and loss of rent revenues (units were leased for $2,100 a month).
“In a nutshell, defendant was negligent, reckless and careless in the planning, construction, maintenance and operation of their stormwater and sanitary system, thereby causing extensive flooding and damage to plaintiff’s property,” the lawsuit alleges.
243 Gorham Street, LLC bought the old Lisk Manufacturing plant in 2016 and spent five years converting the sprawling property — vacated by Lisk in 1965 and essentially unused for well over three decades — into a residential community with a touch of retail.
Along the way, court papers allege, issues with the stormwater system were discovered and the developer and city engineers worked together with private firms to find a solution. The building and surrounding streets flooded one other time after it was purchased by the developer, in 2016, court papers say.
“We ended up with about 4 1/2 feet of water at the end of Charlotte Street,” Lasher said in his deposition filed along with the lawsuit. “The kids were swimming in the middle of Gorham Street at the intersection, it was so deep at the time.
“So, we knew we had an issue with stormwater at that location and we started working with the city in ’16 and ’17 to remediate or solve the issue or problem before we started construction on Building 3.”
Among the solutions, according to Lasher’s deposition, was an easement on the Gorham Street property that allowed the city to make an upgrade to the stormwater piping.
But, because nearby Sonnenberg Gardens & Mansion State Historic Park was also connected to the same sewer lines, the lawsuit alleges the system was overtaxed.
243 Gorham Street, LLC, the development entity owned by Don Lasher and Ken Desrosiers, alleges in court papers filed Aug. 18 in state Supreme Court in Ontario County that an influx of stormwater into the city’s outdated sewer system caused the toilets and floor drains to back up, flooding the building with 1 1/2 to 2 inches of water from the sewer system.
The 20 units and furnishings in Building 3 were damaged during rainstorms of Oct. 26 and Oct. 29 of 2021, first by the sewage water backup, then by the residual effects of subsequent changes in humidity and the remediation efforts to reduce the risk of mold growth, court papers say.
The developer is seeking to recover just over $552,000, the invoiced cost for water damage restoration, cleanup and repairs, as well as ongoing restoration efforts and loss of rent revenues (units were leased for $2,100 a month).
“In a nutshell, defendant was negligent, reckless and careless in the planning, construction, maintenance and operation of their stormwater and sanitary system, thereby causing extensive flooding and damage to plaintiff’s property,” the lawsuit alleges.
243 Gorham Street LLC bought the old Lisk Manufacturing plant in 2016 and spent five years converting the sprawling property — vacated by Lisk in 1965 and essentially unused for well over three decades — into a residential community with a touch of retail.
Along the way, court papers allege, issues with the stormwater system were discovered and the developer and city engineers worked together with private firms to find a solution. The building and surrounding streets flooded one other time after it was purchased by the developer, in 2016, court papers say.
“We ended up with about 4 1/2 feet of water at the end of Charlotte Street,” Lasher said in his deposition filed along with the lawsuit. “The kids were swimming in the middle of Gorham Street at the intersection, it was so deep at the time.
“So we knew we had an issue with stormwater at that location and we started working with the city in ’16 and ’17 to remediate or solve the issue or problem before we started construction on Building 3.”
Among the solutions, according to Lasher’s deposition, was an easement on the Gorham Street property that allowed the city to make an upgrade to the stormwater piping.
But, because nearby Sonnenberg Gardens & Mansion State Historic Park was also connected to the same sewer lines, the lawsuit alleges the system was overtaxed.
” … having storm lines connected to a separate sanitary system in general, or at all, would be considered reckless or negligent,” Lasher said in his deposition. “The storm system should be completely separate from the sanitary; clearly it’s not somewhere.”
243 Gorham Street is represented by Chad Flansburg and Nicholas Fedorka of Phillips Lytle LLP.
[email protected]/(585) 653-4020