Best Practices Construction Law : Construction Lawyer & Attorney : Matthew DeVries : Stites & Harbison Law Firm : Green Building & LEED Litigation

Last week, I attended the Nashville Chamber of Commerce CEO Speaker Series featuring Colin Reed, Chairman and CEO of Gaylord Entertainment.  Reed is a very good speaker and he spent the morning with an audience of 200 sharing some lessons he learned following the flood in Nashville in May 2010.  If you have not seen the pictures of the water that overtook the Gaylord Opryland hotel, then click here.

Reed did not show up last week to tout his leadership abilities.  But if you listened carefully, you learned a few lessons in leadership when faced with an emergency.  These include:

• The time for creating an emergency plan is not during the emergency.  There are going to be obvious and not-so-obvious things to do before an emergency occurs.  One of the most obvious preparations that can be done is to prepare an emergency manual that outlines the potential "events" and "responses."   As a developer or contractor, you can prepare a manual that outlines how your company and employees should respond to a work site accident involving a fatality, or unusually severe weather, or other "unexpected" event.
• Build the "right" culture of leaders, management and employees.  For Reed, this meant being purposeful in getting "the right people on the bus" or finding competent leadership.  It also meant creating an environment where the workforce loves their work and the customers they serve!  Just like the hotel industry is based upon customer service and satisfaction, so too is your construction company, property management group, or banking institution.
• Communication has to be direct and honest during an emergency.  Reed and his staff learned that some of the information being reported about the status of the flood was flawed.  In one communication, he heard that the river was rising and that they had problems.  In another communication, he heard that water levels had ceased and he did not have to worry.  The lesson for Reed: "You cannot rely 100% on the information given to you."  But the lesson was also equally clear that the information that his company had to report needed to be direct and honest in all respects.  Some of the guests were not happy to have been evacuated late in the evening on Sunday night. When Gaylord reported that the hotel lobby was six feet underwater, Reed said, "You could have heard a pin drop.  It was at that moment these customers realized that this was, indeed, really serious."  
• Out of chaos comes opportunity.  This was perhaps Reed's best advice, commenting: "We are a better company because of what we went through."  The chaos of the flood and the more than $20 million in renovations have given Gaylord an opportunity to be a stronger and more successful company.  Although more than 1,700 employees were laid off, it gave Reed and his leadership an opportunity to do the right thing by offering severance pay and three months of health care.  Many of those employees look forward to the coming months as the company begins to rehire up to 80% of its former employees.

Reed concluded that if Gaylord didn’t have the right plans, adequate resources and amazing people during this crises, things would have been wholly different.  Gaylord intends to spend millions to celebrate its re-opening in style in November.

Image: mas90guru

• Email This
• Print
• Comments (2)

Short answer: Yes.

While most of the best practices that I talk about here involve commercial developments, today's post applies both to residential and commercial projects.  It's been two weeks since the historic flooding in Nashville and there is a lot of cleaning up and repair to be done.  On Friday, I received an alert from Davidson County's Department of Building Codes, which contained guidelines for permits related to the repair of flood damaged homes and buildings (pdf).  Here are a few important things to remember, whether the project involves commercial or residential:

• You need a building permit prior to making repairs on flood damages homes and buildings.  While you do not need a permit for clean-up or demolition, a permit is required prior to installation of any drywall, electrical, or HVAC systems.
• The property owner or tenant can pull the permit for repairs up to $25,000.  If the repair costs more than that, the permit must be obtained by a licensed contractor.
• Use extreme caution with restarting of any electrical systems or units.  Again, it is recommended that you have a licensed mechanical contractor inspect and test these systems before using them.

One final recommendation, as related to residential home repairs, is to make sure that your repair contractor is properly licensed through the Department of Commerce and Insurance.  The State has also put together a guide for finding and selecting a licensed contractors (pdf), which recommends the following: (1) get multiple bids from at least 3 contractors; (2) hire only a licensed contractors; (3) get a written contract; (4) get the contractor's proof of insurance; and (5) set up a payment plan and do not pay more than 1/3 deposit.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments (1)

On Saturday, it rained ... and rained ... and rained.

On Sunday, it flooded.

On Monday, I took off from work to help stage a shelter at my local church for a number of Nashville flood victims.

On Tuesday, I spent part of the day with displaced residents whose homes were completely demolished.  I spent the rest of the day dealing with email problems.

On Wednesday, I started fielding calls from clients and other flood victims about what they needed to do following flood losses to their businesses and homes.

Today, I hope to outline some steps about what residents and businesses in Nashville should do about all the chaos, including lost property (personal and business), FEMA claims, insurance claims, and the daunting process of remediation and repair of your home or business. 

1. For both homeowners and businesses, locate your insurance policies.  There are a lot of rumors about flood coverages (what is required, whether you can get flood insurance, whether the loss covers contents or the building).  The only way to get to the truth is to review your policy.  If the actual written document was destroyed, then call your agent for a copy of the policy ... even if they tell you that you do not have coverage for floods.
2. If you don't have any insurance, or you do not have coverage for flood losses, then identify what resources are available to you.  As of today, Cheatham, Davidson, Dyer, Hickman, McNairy, Montgomery, Perry, Shelby, Tipton and Williamson counties have all now been granted Federal disaster designation by the President.  That means, you may qualify for assistance through FEMA.  You can apply for assistance online or by telephone.  FEMA requires that losses be submitted with 60 days.
3. Document your losses.  This may be difficult given your conditions, but it will require making a list of the damaged property, as well as taking pictures and videos. While it may be a no-brainer, separate the good from the bad ... what is recoverable and usable from what is completely destroyed.
4. Contact your advisers, including your insurance agent and attorney.  The process of filing a claim begins with giving "notice" to your insurance carrier.  Even if you are not sure about your coverage, make sure to provide the required notice.  If you are denied for any reason, then an attorney will be able to advise you about your rights. (Remember, though, you need your policy!)
5. Carefully walk through the remediation and repair process.  Whether or not you have insurance, you will want to work remediation and repair contractors who have experience with these types of losses.  As with any disaster, there will be those individuals who want to take advantage of the situation to offer their services at what may seem to be a discount.  You should check whether the company is registered with the Nashville Better Business Bureau.  To verify whether a repair contractor is properly licensed through the State of Tennessee, please use please use http://verify.tn.gov or http://licsrch.state.tn.us/
6. For businesses, evaluate whether you have "business interruption" coverage.  Again, this will depend on the actual policy.  Business interruption coverage is generally not sold as a separate policy, but is added or included in a policy package.  It usually covers: profits, operating expenses, and sometimes temporary relocation expenses. 

There is certainly a lot of advice on the Internet ... some good ... some bad.  There are going to be significant claims in the coming months resulting from the floods in Nashville and it is important that you find reliable information to help you through the process.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments

Many of you have seen the devastation on the news about families all over Middle Tennesse who have displaced from their homes. Two of the groups that have received little to no attention in the media are the homeless and lower income populations throughout Nashville. Tent City has been destroyed and these people have lost everything. The mobile home park across the street from the Fairgrounds (where two elderly people died) has been completely wiped out.

A number of homeless groups and ministries have set up an emergency center at Woodbine Presbyterian (the corner of Nolensville and Thompson Lane) for these people to come eat, get a shower and some clean clothes.  We are in need of the following items:

• Tents
• Sleeping bags and blankets
• Toiletries (soap, toothpaste, tooth brushes, deodrant)
• Towels (wash clothes, hand towels, bathing towels)
• Bottle water and juice
• Snacks (jerkey, nuts, dried fruit, crackers, etc.)
• Gift cards (restaurant, food, phone, Walmart, etc.)

If you are local and can help with any of the above items, please let me know.  Please pass on my contact information to your friends and family. Thanks.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments