Who's to Blame for Sinking San Francisco Luxury High-rise Tower?

Millennium Tower has sunk 10 inches more than the builder predicted the high-rise would sink over its lifetime

CBS SFBayArea

Millennium Tower in San Francisco has sunk 16 inches since completion in 2009 and has also tilted by two inches. Millennium Tower officials claim the sinking was triggered by excavation work for the nearby Transbay Terminal. Transbay officials say the fact that Millennium did not drill piles to bedrock is to blame. Some shifting had always been expected, with the builder predicted six inches of sinking over the high-rise's lifetime.

In fact, Transbay officials say that Millennium Tower had already sunk by 10 inches before its excavation work began. Millennium Tower sits on an area of mud-fill and is anchored over a thick concrete slab with piling extending about 80 feet into dense sand but not into the bedrock.

A spokesman for Millennium Partners says the building's seismic performance has not been significantly affected and does not present a safety risk. However, the Millennium Tower homeowners association has hired independent engineering consultants and is looking at "legal options".

(more on the "leaning tower of San Francisco"...)

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