Author Archives: Melissa Dewey Brumback

Top 3 Things You Should Know about Cell Phone and Texting Laws (Tue Tip)

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cell phone drivingPlanning on driving out of your home state for the holidays?  Perhaps you’re flying somewhere, and have a rental car with your name on it? 

Before you go, be sure you know the following:

1.  Does the state you are in ban handheld cell phones while driving?

2. Does the state you are in ban texting while driving?

3. Is a violation of cell phone/texting laws a primary enforcement?  [That is, can an officer pull you over and cite you for using a handheld cell phone without any other traffic offense taking place?]

This handy chart of cell phone laws in all 50 states will give you the scoop.  Of course, it’s always best to play it safe, but this chart will at least keep you on the right side of the law. 

Happy Trails!

[hat tip to my partner John Nunnally for the link]

Do you know of an awesome website?  A great tool to use?  Share your tips with the community!  Drop me a note or comment, below. 

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Photo:  (c) Will Merydith via Creative Commons. 

Construction Law in NC is two years old today!

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Construction Law in North Carolina is two years old today!  Hard to believe that another year has gone by.  When I first started this blog, I worried that I might run out of things to say.  Not only has that not proven true, but it seems the more I write, the more topics present themselves.  Part of this has to do with my loyal readers, many of whom have taken time to drop me a note with a question or comment, suggest a topic, or participate in my surveys & contests. 

If I haven’t gotten to your suggestions yet, rest assured they are in my “blog pile” and I’ll be broaching them in the next few months.  In the meantime, thanks for reading!

Photo: (c) Leo Reynolds via Creative Commons license.

How Twitter Can Benefit Your A/E/C Business (guest post)

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Today’s guest post is by Katie Frasier, a social media specialist and writer for Work Boot News, a niche site specializing in work boots and dedicated to providing relevant, entertaining content for tradesmen. She can be found tweeting the latest construction news and interacting with industry members at @workbootscom.

Many A/E/C professionals understand the importance of using social media and have been advised to join Twitter—but putting yourself in the Twitterverse can seem intimidating at first. If you find yourself wondering what the heck Tweets are and how you’re supposed to implement them into your marketing plan, here are a few tips to help you get started and make the best return on time spent tweeting.

 Getting started

  • When signing up for your twitter account, choose a username that best reflects your business name to make your brand easy to find. Encourage followers by linking to your Twitter feed on your website, blog, Facebook, LinkedIn and any other platform you use.
  • Decide on your desired audience and Twitter goals. Are you reaching out to other industry professionals? Do you want to share and discuss industry news or gain leads for new business? These decisions will impact how you tweet, how formal or informal you want to come across, and the kind of content you will share with followers. To be successful, make sure you clearly define your method and stick with it consistently.winking twitter bird

 Create a core group to interact with

  • Find competitors or users who tweet to your desired audience, and spend time observing their approach. Search who they are following—chances are you’ll find users there who you’ll want to follow, too.
  • Utilize some of the many Twitter directories such as Twellow.com to search for people by keyword, such as construction” or “contractor” to follow, and add yourself to the directory while you’re at it.
  • Depending on your goals, you may want to investigate if any of your vendors use Twitter. Create a list and add them to it; this allows you to easily follow their tweets and stay informed.

 Listen and engage

  • Spend time listening to the conversations going on before adding to it. You should strive for a balance between conversing with others, asking questions and promoting yourself. If you’re constantly trying to drive traffic to your website or begging for business, no one will listen. But if you actively participate in your specialized Twitter community, people may be more apt to follow links you tweet or offer you their business.
  • Ask questions to get people talking. Answer questions to build relationships and assert yourself as an authority in your field.
  • Retweet content from others that may be relevant to your audience. They’ll appreciate the information, and the original tweeter will appreciate the gesture. Social media is all about building relationships. Making these connections, whether you’re portraying yourself as the expert in a subject or finding camaraderie among other A/E/C professionals, opens new opportunities for your business.

Questions for Katie about the benefits of using Twitter to promote your architectural or engineering practice?  Leave a comment, below.  And, remember to “follow” me on Twitter as well, at @melissabrumback.  I look forward to “talking” to you!

Photo ©Morpurgo.nl via Creative Commons license.

Drop the Dead Weight: Fire your Worst Clients! (Tue Tip)

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Today’s Tip:  Listen to your gut.  Ever get that feeling that a potential client may be high maintenance or want everything done yesterday?   Listen to your instincts and turn them away as fast as you can.  Send them to a directory.  Send them to a rival.  Send them away from you.  Bonus if you can refer them to your worst enemy (kidding!).

The Pareto Principal is true in more ways than one:  not only do 80% of your profits come from 20% of your customers, but 80% of your complaints come from 20% of your customers.  If you can weed out that complaining/crazy/high-maintenance 20% up front, think of the aggravation you will save.

Architects (and engineers) sometimes tell me that they knew they might have issues with a particular client based on how the initial meetings & negotiations proceeded; needing the work, they took the job anyhow, only to find themselves facing the prospect of a long-drawn out lawsuit.  Don’t let this be you.

What to do if you already have the crazy client on board?  Document everything, including verbal agreements.  And cut them loose when you can safely do so.  This can be tricky-if not impossible-to do during an active project.  So in the interim, prepare as if you will be sued, because there is a good chance of it.  Remember that in a lawsuit, everything will be evidence, so your documentation during the project will be vital.

And next time- listen to your gut!

Do you have an experience working with a “crazy” client?  Did you ever not listen to your gut, only to rue the day you didn’t later on?  Share below, or send me an email.  Remember to remove identifying details, to avoid being stalked by your crazy ex-client!

 Photo: (c) jimwhimpey via Creative Commons.

Developers Rejoice Over Impact Fees Decision (news note)

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Today I’m unveiling a new column here at Construction Law in North Carolina called “News Notes”.  News notes will be postings of current news items relating to the design (and construction) community.  [This means that sometimes I must be a tad drier than my usual festive self.  Consider yourself warned.]  If you have an idea for a News Note, drop me a line.

Much to the delight of developers and realtors across the state, the North Carolina Supreme Court recently affirmed a decision which struck down local school impact fees. The fees had been assessed to fund construction of new schools in the Cary portion of the Wake County schools to help with the Town ofCary’s  rapid growth.

Impact fees are usually enacted by local boards and town councils as Adequate Public Facilities Ordinances (APFO).  In 1999, the Town of Cary began assessing school impact fees on developers in certain portions of the town which faced overcrowding.  The revenue brought in by the fees was earmarked to pay for expansion of existing school facilities.  Notably, the Town of Cary has no separate school system from the rest of Wake County, and did not have the legal authority to control the provision of school facilities within the district. 

Last month, the state Supreme Court, in a tight 3-3 tie decision (with one abstention) left the Court of Appeals decision in place, rejecting the Town’s attempt to collect school facilities fees and declaring the fees illegal.  [As an aside, my firm represented another developer who intervened in the lawsuit; however, the facts were somewhat different and we were not involved in this appeal.]

The Cary case is not the first time the issue has arisen in the state.  Currituck County once proposed a similar APFO to fund school construction during the real estate boom as out-of-state residents from Virginia crossed into North Carolina in an attempt to flee the taxes and dismal school system in Chesapeake,Virginia.

The Currituck proposal was widely criticized by both local and state homebuilder’s associations. Across North Carolina, homebuilders and realtor groups worked together to stop attempts at passing such impact fees. These organizations have run into problems as cash-strapped local governments see impact fees as one method of paying for increasingly expensive public school construction.

The theory is that developers of new homes pass the impact fees along to new home buyers by raising the price of homes or lots. Existing residents are spared the tax increases caused by a rapid influx of new residents with school-aged children. Thus, the people responsible for the increased strain on the school system – the new residents – bear the burden of the tax increase.

school

Over the past decade, Durham, Union County, and Cabarrus County have instituted similar impact fees. All three such attempts were disallowed by various courts. Thus far, virtually all attempts at imposing such fees have been struck down, although there appears to be wiggle room in the case law. For example, impact fees collected for improvements that directly run to the property (such as water or sewer lines) are typically allowed. Additionally, other municipal governments impose fees related to schools that have not (yet) been decided in the state court system, and those may be broad enough to pass judicial scrutiny.

In this case, Cary’s ordinance assessed residential developments a mitigation fee if they did not first obtain a certificate from Wake County certifying classroom availability. Over $4 million was ultimately collected since the ordinance was first passed in 1999. Cary is now faced with the prospect of returning these fees, plus over $300,000 in attorney fees awarded to the developers who filed suit.  Ouch!!!

Comments or questions?  Post in the comment section, below.

Photo (c) Ivy Dawned via Creative Commons license.