Stevenson v. County of San Diego

GIBSON, C. J.

—Plaintiff, an architect, was employed by defendant county to prepare preliminary plans and estimates, working plans and specifications and to supervise the construction of a group of buildings for a tuberculosis sanitarium. Upon approval of the preliminary plans and estimates plaintiff was to be paid 1% per cent of the estimated cost of construction. A second contract with the county employed plaintiff to do similar work in connection with alterations and additions to county hospital buildings. Under this employment plaintiff was to receive an initial payment of 2% per cent of the cost. Subsequent progress payments provided for in the contracts are not involved here. In the event of abandonment of the projects, plaintiff was to be paid the amount earned up to that time.

Plaintiff prepared preliminary plans and estimates for the work and the county decided to seek federal aid to finance construction. Accordingly, on July 14, 1941, the board of supervisors passed a resolution directing that an application be made to the Federal Works Agency for financial assistance. The resolution, among other things, authorized and directed certain county officers and plaintiff, as architect, to furnish “the necessary data and information” required in the application for federal financial aid, plaintiff’s services “in this matter to be without charge to the county.” Plaintiff and the others named in the resolution assembled the required data and information from the plans theretofore prepared by him, subject to such changes as were necessary

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to comply with government requirements. This data and information were placed on a form of application furnished by the government and copies of the modified preliminary plans were attached. The application and attached exhibits, including plaintiff’s preliminary plans and estimates, were approved by the board of supervisors in August, 1941.

The federal government did not approve the entire proposed project but agreed to finance the construction of two new buildings and the remodeling of two buildings, for which it appropriated $620,000 and $60,500, respectively. The new construction was to be done under federal contract and the remodeling work was to be done under contracts let by the county. In February, 1942, the federal government employed plaintiff by contract to act as architect on the new construction work for a fee of $29,760. Later, because of differences between them, the county terminated plaintiff’s contracts and he brought this action to recover for services rendered to the county thereunder. The trial court found for plaintiff on all material issues and entered judgment in his favor for $21,539.10, representing the aggregate of four items or amounts which plaintiff alleged he was entitled to recover under his contracts.