Insurance costs can elevate the price of a major development significantly when you add the costs paid by all subcontractors, but new insurance packages can help ease some of the burden by wrapping separate contractor plans into one policy. Sarasota attorney David E. Gurley, of law firm Gurley Vitale, spoke about the way such deals have changed the industry at Florida Construction Law seminar in Miami last month, where he was among 15 presenters speaking to construction experts and executives working on projects around the world. 

Gurley says that these “wrap” policies work for projects that cost $50 million or more, but can save 2 to 3 percent of total project costs, no small figure with developments of that scale. The policies get negotiated for individual projects and will cover everyone from the owners, contractors and architects to the subcontractors and even the sub-subs hired at the lowest levels of a corporate flowchart. “It prevents duplicative coverages and infighting,” Gurley says, but the policies can also be complicated to set up at first. 

But the benefits come in all forms. Most obviously, there’s a cost savings, thanks to the sheer volume purchase and also by avoiding duplicate services purchased by individual contractors’ policies.

Perhaps more importantly, when a claim does need to be filed, a single policy looks for a quick resolution rather than an assignment of blame. He used the example of if a window ended up leaking in a major condominium project. If every contractor and sub had their own policies, the companies or their representatives would expend significant energy finding out what company bore responsibility for the error. “You have five or six parties all pointing to each other saying it’s you, not me,” Gurley said. “Even when you have insurance involved, carriers want to minimize loss and look to other carriers for responsibility. When you have one policy, that doesn’t come up. It’s just how do we fix it and how do we move on.” And with projects of massive scale, some type of problem inevitably will arise. “You can’t build a $50-million project and not have a hiccup somewhere.”

But those who use “wrap” policies should also be aware they work differently than individual contractor policies, and could affect how a project comes together. Typically, “wrap” policies only cover work on-site; so contractors can’t construct something off-site and bring it in, then expect any problems to be covered. Also, workman’s compensation programs typically get covered by an administrator tied just to the project, rather than getting outsourced by insurance to an outside firm.

It all makes for a complex effort, Gurley warns. “It’s customized because of the nature of a product to a particular project, and it necessarily involves outside administrators and consultants to help design and most proficiently price the product. It’s not off-the-shelf insurance.” 

Photo of David Gurley.

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced a slate of Farm Service Agency and Rural Development State Directors, including Sydney Gruters, the new Rural Development state director for Florida and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Gruters has worked for U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Sarasota, for more than 10 years in an official capacity and has served as the congressman’s liaison regarding all USDA issues that affect rural development. All appointments announced by Perdue serve as appointees of President Donald J. Trump. 

USDA

Looking to fill 100+ positions, TableSeide Restaurant Group will be holding a two-day job fair, November 10 and 11, for front-of-house and back-of-house positions, for three restaurants including Libby’s Café + Bar, Louies Modern and Muse at The Ringling, as well as Modern Events, the company’s catering and special events division. Interviews will be held at Louies Modern in downtown Sarasota at 1289 North Palm Ave from 1 to 4pm on November 10 and Saturday November 11. Openings include dishwashers, line cooks, servers, bartenders, banquet captains, expediters, food runners, hosts and bussers. Qualified candidates will be interviewed and notified of acceptance at the time of interview. All candidates must bring the appropriate legal identification documents. Joe Seidensticker, CEO of TableSeide Restaurant Group, notes that in addition to competitive wages, employees are also offered a variety of benefits packages as well as other TableSeide perks. 

TableSeide Restaurant Group

Sarasota Memorial Healthcare System has initiated a new community collaboration designed to support pregnant women struggling with addictions. The Addiction Support and Pregnancy (ASAP) coalition is a weekly recovery support group meeting to help all in need of a safe environment without judgment. Meetings are free and open to all recovering moms-to-be. Meetings are held 5:30pm every Thursday in Sarasota Memorial's Labor & Delivery classroom (4th Floor), 1700 South Tamiami Trail, Sarasota. For ASAP information, call (941) 917-7777.  

Sarasota Memorial Health Care System

Sheriff Tom Knight has announced that the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office has been re-accredited by the Commission for Florida Law Enforcement Accreditation (CFA). Assessors conducted a three-day onsite visit in August to examine policies, management, operations and support services. They found the agency in compliance with all 259 applicable standards, and in their recommendation for re-accreditation commended the agency for eight flawless onsite visits in a row, and the third time receiving the Excelsior Award. In addition to this CFA law enforcement accreditation, the Sarasota County Jail is accredited by the Florida Corrections Accreditation Commission (FCAC), and the Emergency Operations Bureau’s Public Safety Communications Section is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement (CALEA) for law enforcement dispatch, and the National Academies of Emergency Dispatch (NAED) for medical and fire communications. The Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office was the first agency in the state to become fully accredited in 1996. 

Sarasota County Sheriff's Office

“S’macks has the best fries not because they are fries but because they put a smile on your face when you eat them.” Do you agree? Vote for the restaurant with the Best Fries below in SRQ Magazine’s Best of SRQ Local Reader’s Competition. 

Vote Here!