[COM] 413 KWS Vue on King William | 89m | 28Lvl | Residential

[Llessur2002]

Vue on King William residents launch legal action, claiming their tower apartments get too hot

RESIDENTS in Adelaide’s tallest apartment tower have launched legal action against the developer of the award-winning $100 million building, claiming their properties get too hot.

Vue on King William’s community corporation has filed a pre-trial application seeking access to documents from the developer of the 87m-tall tower to build the case for a potential claim in the District Court.

The action comes less than two years after the completion of the 205-apartment tower by developer Vue on KWS Pty Ltd — a joint venture between Adelaide-based Starfish Developments and Melbourne developer the Deague Group.

Vue on KWS lawyer Samuel Hurburgh, of Minter Ellison, said the nub of the issue was that the apartments get “too hot”.

“There’s either an issue with the glass, issue with the thermal performance of the building or with the airconditioning,” he said. “I don’t know if it’s all apartments.”

The community corporation’s lawyer Amy Davis, of Barry Nilsson lawyers, told Master Mark Rice it was primarily the apartments facing the west that have the “most difficulty”.

Mr Hurburgh told the court on Thursday that his client is opposing the application by the community corporation for pre-action disclosure of documents.

The Vue apartments were completed in May 2016 and the first residents moved in a month later.

The building is on the western side of King William St, near the corner of South Tce.

A former Vue on King William resident, who wished to remain anonymous, said she and her husband moved out of their rental property last July because of the heat.

“The apartment was always so hot because of the glass and poor airconditioning,” she said.

“I was told the heat was the price you paid for the beautiful view. We were northeast on level 16. By 8am in summer the apartment was really hot.

“The AC was installed in a position that didn’t allow for (air) flow through the apartment.”

Starfish Developments managing director Damon Nagel declined to comment on the court action.

The Advertiser has sought comment from the Deague Group and comment from the community corporation through legal firm Barry Nillson Lawyers.

The Vue on King William won the 2016 Urban Development Institute of Australia SA branch High Density Housing Award in 2016.

From: http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/sout ... 27218836e6

[rev]

“I was told the heat was the price you paid for the beautiful view.

Would they be saying that to the owner of a multi million dollar penthouse? Pretty poor.

[claybro]

Who would have thought a dark brown, east /west facing building in one of the hottest summer cities on earth would cause a heat load problem?

[timtam20292]

Omg

[Algernon]

If they were to succeed then I can't see many options for a remedy. Central cooling can't be retrofitted. Larger A/C units o the balconies would be louder and the next complaint will be the building sounds like a Collins Class sub.

If residents get creative they can shave a degree or 2 off with indoor plants.

[YellowRoad]

Not good publicity for apartments in a city thats just starting to warm to them.. been a few poat completion issues raised with cbd buildings now, sulfens, august towers.

[arki]

Not saying they are wrong to file the suit but I lived in a level 15 apartment in Melbourne for a few years and even in winter I would sometimes have to use the air con. I always just thought it was part and parcel of living higher up...hot air rises, you are in a structure made of glass and steel, some windows are in the sun for 80% of the day...Not sure what some people expect.

[SRW]

Good to see their suit, if for no other reason than to highlight this as an issue.

I posted an article some time ago about the lack of thermal standards for Australian developments. It's just mind boggling considering the warming climate and the very real health consequences that we don't design buildings that you can exist in beyond a certain temperature.

[claybro]

The original renders of the building showed a much lighter and more reflective finish. Had construction been true to the finishes shown, the reflective quality of the facade and glass used would have significantly reduced the heat load inside the building. If the builder has tried to save cost by going for a lower quality, less reflective finish and lower performing glazing, then their decision could cost them big time.

[Hybrid]

More today in the advertiser

WINDOWS “have exploded and blinds have melted” in an Adelaide CBD apartment complex — as residents complain about heat issues inside the two-year-old Vue on King William tower, the District Court has heard.

Residents in the city’s tallest residential building, the Vue on King William, have also taken heat readings inside their apartments that have revealed huge differences between internal and external temperatures, a lawyer for the building’s management corporation said.

The details have emerged in court action launched by the corporation — which is seeking access to building plans of the $100 million tower — to investigate potential cause of heat-related issues and whether residents may have grounds to sue for damages, breach of contract and misleading and deceptive conduct.

The Advertiser revealed last month that residents had refused to renew leases, broken leases and even covered windows in wrapping paper to try and beat the heat.

The corporation’s lawyer Tom Besanko told District Court Master Mark Rice last Friday that it was “clear” there was something wrong with the building, which opened two years ago.

“We’ve had four shattered windows, some of them has been described as exploding,” he said, in a transcript of the June 15 hearing.

“We’ve had melted blinds, presumably as a consequence of the heat on the glass, and we have a number of residents who have undertaken heat surveys which have identified huge temperature differentials between the temperature in the room and the temperature outside.

“There have also been a raft of complaints about the heat issue by whole number of different individual lot owners.

“So standing back and looking at this, in circumstances where the building is only two years old, this should not be happening.”

Residents have taken internal temperature readings inside the Vue. This image shows a temperature reading of 37C at 9am on September 8, 2017 recorded on a thermometer placed against an east-facing apartment window. The resident's mobile phone shows the outside temperature was 13.5C
Mr Besanko told the court last week that “whatever is wrong” with the building may not be the fault of developer.

“It could be a consequence of something someone else has done,” he said.

“My client may have a cause of action against some other person or some other body … and it is permissible for my client to bring an application seeking documents from the respondent in order to determine whether it has got a claim.”

A couple, who declined to be identified, supplied to The Advertiser temperature readings taken inside their apartment, which showed on February 3 the temperature in their bedroom reached 52.9C — 19.8C higher than the maximum outside temperature on that day.

“There’s not enough before the court for Your Honour to believe that there may be a cause of action as has been put forward,” he said.

He said the plaintiff had sought to draw the issue of the smashing glass as an “extra basis” to seek a request for documents.

Mr Rice asked whether “you would expect” shattering of glass with nickel sulphide.

Mr Hurburgh said it did not give rise to an expectation that it happened all the time.

Mr Rice reserved judgement on the corporation’s application.

Vue on KWS, in a statement to The Advertiser last month, said the building was built to “exacting high standards and was certified prior to occupancy”.

[Hybrid]

[HiTouch]

What a bunch of whingers. 52C degrees in your apartment? Oh poor you. Oh your window shattered due to heat pressure? Boo hoo. Your blinds melted from the insane magnifying effect? Waaa.
They should be happy that they even have heat, blinds and windows . A lot of people in the world would desire those things. Stop complaining and think about the people in Antarctica for a change.

Bunch of sooks if you ask me.

[Nort]

This type of thing would have been covered at the design phase, so I'm definitely thinking someone along the way stuffed up with using the wrong materials.

[Jaymz]

Also, from what I'm led to believe, there is no air con in the bedrooms, only the living area.

[timtam20292]

None in the bedrooms? Omg no way. That's pretty poor if that is the case.