Capital City Brick & Pipe Co. v. City of Des Moines

113 N.W. 835, 136 Iowa 243
CourtSupreme Court of Iowa
DecidedNovember 18, 1907
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 113 N.W. 835 (Capital City Brick & Pipe Co. v. City of Des Moines) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Iowa primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Capital City Brick & Pipe Co. v. City of Des Moines, 113 N.W. 835, 136 Iowa 243 (iowa 1907).

Opinion

Weaver, C. J.

Under a written contract witb the defendant city, the plaintiff constructed a bridge across the Des Moines river. After tbe completion of the work and the payment of the stipulated price, this action was 'brought to recover for extra work and extra material which it was alleged the city by its proper officers had required or requested the plaintiff to furnish beyond and in excess of the labor and material required by the plans and specifications under which the contract was performed. The alleged cause of action is stated in three counts. The ease as made by the first count is, in substancej that the plans and specifications upon which the plaintiff made its bid and upon which it entered into the contract represent that the city had already made borings at the site of the bridge, and thus located the surface of the solid rock or ’ foundation upon which the bridge was to be erected. It was further stipulated that in case the surface of such rock should be found to be other than as shown by the plans and borings referred to, and the party of the first part was thereby put to extra labor, work, [245]*245and material in order to make a suitable foundation, tbe plaintiff should be compensated tberefor. It is alleged by plaintiff that on undertaking to put in the foundations for the bridge, it was found that the borings referred to were not a true indication of the condition of the earth and rock, and, further, that, on making excavations to the rock strata, the defendant city refused to permit the plaintiff to erect piers thereon until at great extra expense and labor excavation had been made in said rock to an additional depth of several feet.

In the second count of the petition, the same matter is stated, though in somewhat different form, and it is further alleged that in making its - bid and entering into its contract for the erection of the bridge, plaintiff relied upon the representations made by the officers and the agents of the city as to the character of the soil and the distance from the surface to a suitable rock foundation, which representations after-wards proved to be untrue and misleading, thereby causing the plaintiff great damage.

The third count set up a claim for damages because of a suspension of the work by order of the officers and agents of the city, but this claim w.as by the trial court withdrawn from the consideration of the jury, and we need not further consider it

The fourth count of the petition states that the contract plans and specifications called for the use in constructing the bridge of a large quantity of iron ribs one-fourth of an inch in thickness, and that, after the work had been entered upon, the defendant’s officers and board of public works requested and required the plaintiff to make use of iron ribs of a thickness of three-eights of an inch, instead of one-fourth inch, as required by the plans, and that the additional cost and value of the iron thus used amounted to a large sum, for which recovery is sought. The defendant denies each and all of the claims thus made against it, and alleges that plaintiff has waived its right to assert such claims, and that [246]*246the action thereon is barred by the failure of plaintiff to present them to the board of public works of the city of Des Moines prior to the final settlement between the parties, as it was required to do under the terms of the contract. There was a trial of these issues to the court and jury, and a verdict returned in favor of plaintiff for the sum of $12,015. The defendant’s motion to set aside the verdict and for a new trial was overruled; and, judgment being rendered on the verdict, the defendant has appealed.

While the record transmitted to this court is very voluminous, the material questions presented by the appeal are comparatively few so far as the merits of the controversy are concerned. The arguments of counsel are largely devoted to the claim stated in the first and second counts of the petition growing out of the alleged extra labor and •expense occasioned by ■ the character of the soil and rock through which excavation was made for the foundation of the bridge. The specifications upon which the contract was at first prepared contained a clause in the following words: “ (4) Survey. The site of the structure has been carefully surveyed and marked on the ground for examination. Five borings have been made on the center line of the structure and as shown on the plans.” It further provided that the excavation for abutments and piers should be carried to solid rock. In the body of the contract, as distinguished from the specifications, is also found the following clause:

The said party of the first part further agrees to perform said work in strict accordance with this contract, and with the plans and specifications hereinbefore referred to, for the sum of seventy-four thousand nine hundred dollars ($14,900), which shall be in full compensation for the cost of the entire work; and the city of Des Moines shall not be liable to the said party of the first part for “ extras ” of any kind, nor for any damage which he may sustain by coming in contact with rock, sand, water or any other unforeseen material or obstruction, nor for any damage by the elements before the work is completed and finally accepted by [247]*247the city, nor for delays in the completion of said work except as herein otherwise provided; it being’ expressly understood that the contract price above specified shall be in full for all work and material furnished under this contract.

When the contract was submitted for the signatures of the parties, some difference of opinion was disclosed as to the meaning and effect of the original draft of the instrument, and, after considerable discussion, there was added thereto certain provisions entitled addenda^” among which was the following:

The plans and specifications for the bridge show that five (5) borings have been made by the city of Des Moines locating the surface of the solid rock for the foundation. It is agreed that in case the surface of said rock is found to be otherwise than as shown by the plans and borings, and the party of the first part is put to extra labor, work, and material in order to make a suitable foundation, then the party of the first part shall be compensated for the extra work and material as provided in the specifications for the compensation of extra work upon the order of the city engineer ; but, if the cost to the contractor is less than that of the construction, as shown by the plans and specifications, the amount of the difference shall be deducted from the contract price.

Both the principal draft of the contract and the addenda above mentioned were then duly executed by both parties, and, with the plans and specifications therein referred to, constituted the final agreement under which the bridge was constructed. The blueprints or copies of the plans furnished by the city to the appellee purport to contain a showing of the borings which had been made at the sites of the abutments and piers and to indicate the character of the earth through which the excavations were to be made, and the depth at which the rock for the foundation would be reached. This showing the plaintiff claims was incorrect and misleading, and that the excavation developed material much more difficult to work, thereby causing in[248]*248creased and unexpected expense in removing the same.

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Bluebook (online)
113 N.W. 835, 136 Iowa 243, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/capital-city-brick-pipe-co-v-city-of-des-moines-iowa-1907.