Commercial Insurance Restoration

Emanuel Ethiopian Church

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Emmanuel Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church/Apartments

This Beacon Hill building presented a multitude of challenges. The original structure (which appeared to be a retail store) was built in the late 1890's. It now serves as a church and has three large apartments above. The structural fire damage was mainly limited to the roof and parapet walls, however, both levels of this two story building suffered extensive water damage from fighting the fire. An indication of the age of the building was some piping for gas lanterns that we uncovered inside of the structural cavities.

Some of the difficulties we faced were insurance coverage limitations, limited ownership funds, and structural deficiencies. The existing religious artifacts and rooms with specific religious purposes required sensitivity by all crews involved. We were able to perform modifications necessary for church functionality without additional cost.

The bright colors used on the exterior of the building reflect the happy spirit of the people we worked with at the church.

North Seattle Medical Clinic

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North Seattle Medical Clinic

This medical clinic office suffered extensive damage due to fire. The two story space consists of a reception area, waiting area, offices, common hallways, x-ray room, bookkeeping, workshop, storage areas, lunch room, lab areas, eight exam rooms and rest rooms. The clinic was approximately 75% gutted down to the structure. All areas were treated for odor control. A specialty medical design company was hired to re-design the reception and office areas. As all fire damage repair projects do, the repairs offered them a great opportunity to re-design and decorate. Custom cabinetry in the exam rooms was repaired and re-finished as needed.

Trinity Episcopal Church

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Trinity Episcopal Church

This church was constructed during the early 1900's. The original building, located in downtown Seattle, was destroyed during the great Seattle fire and rebuilt right away. Another fire in 1902 gutted the interior, but the church rebuilt yet again a few years later. It is a fantastic example of stellar craftsmanship. The woodwork, plaster work, and stained glass windows are exquisite. A deteriorated steel boiler pipe located under the basement concrete floor burst, shooting steam into the adjacent children's nursery and then up through the upper hardwood floor located in the Transept (Sanctuary offset). The basement level nursery required replacement of casework, cabinetry, the floor structure and floor coverings. Mold was discovered in the floor structure and behind cabinetry. Mold remediation was performed according to an Industrial Hygienist's protocol. Two sections of hardwood were patched in the Transept floor. The entire Sanctuary, North Transept and South Transept floors were sanded, stained, and refinished. The entry and aisle way carpet was also replaced. Detaching, moving and re-installing of all ornate oak pews was required to perform the hardwood repairs.

Issaquah Restaurant

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Issaquah Restaurant / Strip Mall

Our 1-800-BoardUp division responded to a fire damage emergency call during the middle of the night. The fire was in a strip mall type building located in the Gilman Village area. The majority of the damage occurred in the tenant space occupied by Cascade Garden Restaurant, and started in their large kitchen area. There was minimal damage to the adjacent space occupied by Weight Watchers. The primary task of ours was to get both businesses back in operation as soon as possible. This took a considerable amount of coordination between all parties; the two involved insurance companies’ claims adjusters, the property management company, and the City of Issaquah; working through permits, plans review, inspections and code requirements.

The Weight Watchers’ space required a new ceiling grid, drywall, paint, shelving and finish work. Even though the smoke damage in the Weight Watchers space was minimal, due to the 2-hour fire wall code upgrade requirement, the tenant needed to temporarily relocate so we could perform the repairs. This upgrade of the demising wall between Cascade Garden and Weight Watchers was a major code correction.

Cascade Garden Restaurant has been in business for over 20 years in that location and is well known for its excellent Chinese food. The existing Type I exhaust hood system was significantly upgraded to a Type II system in order to meet current building codes. This required engineered drawings and City plans review. Structural enhancements were engineered and performed to support the new Type II system. Roofing repairs were also performed. The existing HVAC heat ducting was moved to accommodate the changes.

Most of the cooking equipment was replaced. The large island prep station was cleaned and protected during the repairs. The adjacent dishwashing equipment and prep stations were removed, cleaned and re-installed. Existing refrigeration units were cleaned and painted. Carpet and window coverings were replaced in the large dining areas.

During the course of repairs, rot was uncovered in the wall structure between the dishwashing area and the Men’s Restroom. These repairs, though unrelated to the fire, also required code updates to the plumbing fixtures attached to the wall.

After enduring a very inconvenient disruption in their businesses, the outcome for each tenant and the building owner was a more functional and enhanced space.

Marysville Building

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Marysville Commercial Building

A major fire left this commercial building with substantial damage. The building is a strip mall which consists of three retail spaces totaling 6500 sq ft., with an additional 1400 sq ft of basement storage area. Three insurance companies were involved in the building repair claim. Often commercial spaces have multiple insurance companies which share the financial responsibilities for demolishing and rebuilding. In a case like this, our job is to provide enhanced information and assistance to help achieve seamless communication between all parties to facilitate the adjusting aspect of the claims process.

Like most commercial fire damage projects we perform, the tenants had ideas of changes they would like implemented in order to improve their individual spaces for conducting business. We worked with the building owner and tenants to achieve the very best changes available for all parties.

Complete new roof top mounted heating and cooling systems were installed. Partial roof structure replacement was performed. An engineer was hired to design the structural replacements and submit to the City for approval. Electrical engineering was also required. Code corrective work was performed as required by the City.

The fire started in the middle space which is occupied by a chiropractic and wellness center. This space was severely burned and required a complete demolition of all interior finishes down to the framing. Substantial damage was also incurred to the roof system, walls and floor framing. New room layouts were created to improve the space to better provide for their clients’ needs. All new finishes were installed, including custom cabinetry, doors, millwork, floor coverings, painting and special medical components.

One of the other spaces is occupied by a State Farm Insurance agency. This space suffered substantial smoke damage. A new suspended ceiling system, odor control applications, painting and floor coverings were all a part of the scope for this space. New wall partitions were designed and installed to enhance the office employee work areas, which were performed as change order work.

The third space also suffered severe smoke damage. It was occupied by a pharmacy which chose to relocate their business after the fire. This space was finished as a vanilla shell, ready for a future tenant.

The basement storage space also suffered severe smoke damage. Restoration of this space included new ceilings, drywall, paint and flooring.

Capital Hill Apartment

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Capital Hill Apartments

In 1907 was the original date this building was constructed. It stood alone at that time but now sits amongst crowded city blocks. Construction methods and building styles were much different than our current modern practices. This scenario always makes rebuilding very interesting. This old structure consisted of three stories above ground and a basement. It has over 30 apartment units and includes large common hallways with connecting open stairways.

A third floor unit was completely gutted due to the fire. Two units directly below were severely damaged from water and partially gutted. Two other third floor units were water damaged from fire department efforts to extinguish the fire. All three upper floor common areas and stairwells suffered smoke damage.

The building owners took advantage of the rebuilding opportunity to make slight changes to the room layouts, making the units more open and versatile. The plumbing system was still constructed of the original lead pipes. The neatly soldered joints were a testament to the craftsmanship of the workman who constructed it; however they had to be replaced using modern methods. Working with the existing old wood lathe and plaster finishes added to the challenges of a successful repair. New painting schemes in the common areas enhanced the tenant experience.