Tutor Perini Corp. has reached a nearly $190 million settlement with the owners of the CityCenter project in Las Vegas over a hotel that never opened due to alleged construction flaws, according to regulatory filings on Wednesday.
The Sylmar construction company was the general contractor on the hotel, called the Harmon, which was to be showpiece of the 67-acre development that opened in 2009 and features other hotels, a casino and a shopping mall with restaurants.
However, construction on the 48-story Harmon was halted at 26 stories after defects were discovered. The hotel is currently being demolished.
Owners MGM Resorts International and CityCenter Holdings, MGM’s joint venture for the project with the Dubai World sovereign wealth fund, filed a lawsuit in 2010 alleging shoddy construction. Tutor has insisted the building is structurally sound.
Clark County District Court Judge Elizabeth Gonzalez announced that a confidential settlement had been reached just as Tutor Perini was to square off against MGM in court on Tuesday.
The trial was expected to last months and the Associated Press reported that there were gasps in the Las Vegas courtroom when the settlement was announced.
Gonzalez released no details of the settlement, but the figures were disclosed in Securities and Exchange Commission filings made by both MGM and Tutor.
MGM said in a Tuesday filing that it is settling the dispute by paying $153 million to Tutor Perini to satisfy construction lien claims not related to the Harmon building. Tutor Perini on Wednesday filed what it called a clarification to MGM’s filing.
The construction company said it is receiving net proceeds of $189.5 million to settle all of its City Center lien claims. That includes prior proceeds of $51 million from City Center and an $11 million “cash contribution” the construction company will make back into the project.
Also, Tutor Perini said the agreement settles all claims and counter claims filed by all parties, including various subcontractors. None of the parties admitted any wrongdoing as part of the agreement.
Shares of Tutor closed up $1.25, or 6 percent, to $21.95 on the New York Stock Exchange.
