Settlement Reached in Chicago Porch Collapse That Killed 13

CHICAGO â€”  The owners and managers of a building where a porch collapsed during the summer and killed 13 people reached a settlement with the city over alleged building code violations.

The owners and managers must pay $108,500 to settle claims against the property where the porch collapsed, and $4,200 to resolve code violations at 21 other properties, said Joseph Carini, attorney for LG Properties.

A judge approved the settlement Wednesday.

Those named in the complaints included LG Properties; its president, Philip Pappas; and Restoration Specialists LLC.

A judgment of $25,000 also was entered against George Koutroumbis, the contractor who built the porch, the city said.

The judge permanently barred Koutroumbis from building or modifying any buildings in Chicago, according to a statement released by the city.

An attorney for Koutroumbis did not immediately return a phone call Wednesday evening from Associated Press.

About 50 people were on the building’s third-floor porch when it collapsed June 29. Besides those who died, many were injured.

The settlement is the first step toward repairing the building, which has remained vacant since the collapse, Carini said.

The agreement is not valid unless all repairs are completed by March 1.

The original lawsuit, filed in July in Housing Court, said the owners built the porch without a permit. The lawsuit also claimed that the porch was too big and was built with the wrong materials.

The city later filed lawsuits against an additional 21 properties owned by the same defendants after inspectors alleged code violations.