The Moses Lake School District is suing two well-known Tri-City companies, alleging design and building flaws that led to the closure of its new $18 million school.

The district accuses Fowler General Construction of Richland of improper and incomplete work and Design West Architects of Kennewick of failing to administer the project and notify the district of problems.

The district said it was forced to close the new school in April, citing numerous issues in court documents, including gaps appearing between boards in the gym floor, improperly installed fire suppression systems, school employees receiving electrical shocks, a defective roof that has led to water intrusion and more.

“We want to do what’s right for our taxpayers and that’s why we’re pursuing litigation,” Ryan Shannon, the district’s communications director, told the Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business.

Fowler, based in Richland, denies the district’s claims, saying it worked on the school as detailed by plans and specifications and has filed a countersuit.

“Our position is the district’s complaint is significantly exaggerated to fit the district’s narrative,” attorney Rick Wetmore, Fowler’s general counsel, told the Journal.

The builder’s countersuit claims the school district breached its contract by failing to pay for the work completed and retaliating against the construction company in bad faith. It’s also countersuing many of the project’s subcontractors, saying any defective work is a breach of their contracts with Fowler.

Design West Architects, which was recently added as a defendant in the lawsuit, had not filed a response in Grant County Superior Court as of Oct. 31. The firm declined to comment on the case when contacted by the Journal.

School construction

Groff Elementary, located on the southeast edge of Moses Lake and built to accommodate up to 500 students, was one of two projects funded by a $135 million bond approved by voters in February 2017. The district hired Design West to design the school as a prototype, so that the plan could be used to build future elementary schools.

The district awarded the bid for the project to Fowler, the low bidder, in June 2020, with construction taking place the following year. The company built two facilities for the school district in the past, Columbia Basin Technical Skills Center and the district's transportation department building.  

Fowler and Design West have worked on numerous school projects in the Tri-Cities and across the state, often together. Both worked on Kennewick High School for the Kennewick School District, and Tapteal Elementary School and Leona Libby Middle School in West Richland for the Richland School District, among others.

Groff Elementary began welcoming students at the start of the 2021-22 school year.

‘Immense challenges’

The Moses Lake district said the school began facing “immense challenges” almost as soon as students and staff arrived in the new building.

Investigations by the district determined that electrical shocks reported by staff were a result of the building being improperly grounded, Shannon said. The school also did not meet code requirements for matters related to air tightness, stairs and more, according to court documents.

“The worksmanship was not there,” Shannon said. “There were unauthorized changes and critical omissions.”

The problems were persistent and severe enough the district’s school board voted in April to close Groff and move students and staff to several schools throughout Moses Lake.

Shannon said the goal is to bring students and staff back in the fall 2026, once issues with the building have been documented and fixed. Seattle-based Graham Construction Company was hired to conduct that work.

The school district also claims that Fowler withheld information about Groff’s condition from Design West. However, the architecture firm knew or should have known the school “was replete with major construction defects, but (Design West) did not inform the school district that the work failed to satisfy the plans and specifications, as required by its contract and the professional standard of care,” according to court documents.

The district also has sued Western Surety Company, which provided the performance bond for Fowler on the project but has not reimbursed the school district for the claimed damages at Groff. Western Surety also has denied the school district’s lawsuit claims.

Fowler’s countersuit

Fowler claims the school district has wrongfully failed to pay it for its work on Groff and terminated its contract without cause.

“Fowler has continuously sought clarification from (the school district) as to the extent of the claimed defects, and has at all times been prepared to address and remedy any defects to which Fowler agrees it is responsible and require remediation,” the contractor stated in court documents in response to the lawsuit.

The district’s actions are especially questionable considering the district used the school to house students for about four years, Wetmore said.

“Fowler strongly disputes there was any need or basis to abandon the building and shut the school down,” he said. “They reportedly did that under the auspices of health and safety but it just wasn’t justified.”

For example, the shocks staff experienced in the building were a result of static electricity and not live voltage running through the building, Wetmore said. Internal communications of the state Department of Labor & Industries about the school closure indicate that phenomenon occurs throughout the community.

“It’s entirely unrelated to the means, methods or quality of construction,” Wetmore said. “It even affects the local Costco.”

In the related countersuit against subcontractors who worked on Groff, ranging from electrical and plumbing contractors to floor installers and roofers, Fowler asserts they will owe damages for breaching their contracts to provide good workmanship and properly manage their work.

Fowler and Western Surety recently were permitted to visit the school with their own experts to assess the problems with the building identified by the school district, Shannon and Wetmore confirmed to the Journal.

Trial scheduled

Shannon said the district has promised the community not to bring students or staff back to Groff until district officials are sure it is safe to do so.

The litigation involving the school, however, likely will take much longer. A judge’s order outlining the timelines for the case indicate that the school district, Fowler, Design West and Western Surety have through the end of 2026 to disclose their experts and complete discovery.

The trial is scheduled to start March 1, 2027.