Those who live in Pittsburgh probably have a better idea than most with the myriad of problems that surrounded the completion of the Petersen Event Center. Last April, the Post-Gazette did a 2-part in-depth story on the cost overruns and expenses of the Pete. In a follow-up article, they detail the state’s strange and unclear procedures for resolving disputes with contractors over monies owed.

Just to keep things messy, the state and Pitt filed a lawsuit yesterday:

The school and the Pennsylvania Department of General Services, which ran the construction project, filed two lawsuits yesterday seeking unspecified damages against the companies and their insurance companies for alleged problems at the $107 million Petersen Events Center, which opened in November 2002.

Neither the state nor the university estimated how much the alleged problems would cost to repair.

In the lawsuit, the university claims an architectural partnership between Pittsburgh-based Apostolou Associates and Atlanta-based Rosser International drew up shoddy plans and caused construction delays that cost the university $5.5 million to settle claims by contractors.

The university also claims the arena’s steel and aluminum roof, which was installed by Kansas City-based Havens Steel Co. and G&W Roofing & Construction of Eighty-Four, Pa., is deteriorating and has leaks from poor workmanship.

According to the article, there are more than 200 holes in the roof and the venilation, sprinkler and communication systems are all subpar. It apparently won’t interfere with the basketball games.