Chapter 37 - The Architect's Eye
Natalie, the bookstore owner, introduced me to a community development engineer named Owen Brooks. He recognized my surname from an old city design-review panel.
“Were you involved with the TriBeCa redevelopment study?” he asked casually, while we stood beneath exposed ceiling joists.
I looked up. “Early concept work. Why?”
“There's an argument about subsurface conditions near the site. It probably won't affect this shop, but everyone's suddenly asking for old drawings.”
I tried to concentrate on the bookstore, but the name stayed with me.
At home I searched my own lawfully retained project records. I hadn't taken any confidential Moretti files. I did have a dated cover letter from my former consulting firm acknowledging a preliminary structural-risk observation in a neighboring parcel.
My stomach tightened. The old memo recommended further investigation before any aggressive foundation work. I didn't know whether the recommendation had been followed.
I sent the cover letter to Miriam with a question: Is this relevant to the valuation fight, or am I connecting things that aren't connected?
May you like
She answered: Maybe. Do not contact the board yourself. Let us establish who owns the work and whether there is a public-safety issue.
I sat with the sentence. This wasn't about hurting Adrian. Buildings could hurt people long after corporate arguments were forgotten.
