Savage v. Flagler Company Et Al‪.‬

Summary Judgment -- Wrongful Death -- Duty to Licensee. The pertinent facts of this unfortunate incident show that in 1979-80 an entity known as Interstate North owned raw land adjacent to Windy Hill Road. The land was sold in 1980 to the Borel Restaurant Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Stouffer Corporation, for the purpose of building a restaurant to be called the Rusty Scupper. Borel/Stouffer engaged the services of D. E. Hill Engineer, Inc./Hill Fister Engineers, Inc. as the project engineer to draw necessary land preparation grading requirements to prepare the real estate for a restaurant site with appropriate parking area. Edmond Stevens/Edmond Stevens Associates was engaged as the project architect and designer. The Flagler Corporation was engaged as the contractor charged with construction of the restaurant and parking lot. Hill Fister Engineers drew plans for the parking lot to the north side of the restaurant site. The raw land upon which this project was to be completed was in effect a flat area with access from Windy Hill Road. On the north side, or front of the lot, there was a sharp decline in elevation denominated as a precipice, a cliff or drop-off. From the level land to the bottom of the decline was a distance of approximately 70 feet. When Flagler drove stakes to commence the land preparation in accordance with the drawings of Hill Fister, Flagler determined the parameters of the parking lot on the north side extended out over the decline. Hill Fister had recommended that a retaining wall be built to retain necessary fill dirt to support the edge of the parking lot on the north side. However because the lot actually extended over the void of the decline, recommendations were obtained from the architect, Stevens. It was decided rather than to build a retaining wall at the north side of the lot, the parking lot would be slightly reduced in size and moved to the south. As a result no retaining wall was necessary and no fill dirt was required to support the completed parking lot.