By Jennifer Valentino
Daily Texan
February 12, 1999

A company headed by a new appointee to the UT System Board of Regents is being sued by the U.S. Department of Justice for $45 million.

Hunt Building Corporation, run by prospective regent Woody Hunt, is charged with violating federal law in the construction of a military family housing complex at Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota.

The lawsuit alleges that improper design and construction caused the housing units to twist and break apart in the wind.

Other violations included faulty plumbing that caused sewer gases to back up into some units.

"In some units, pipes were simply inserted into the ground to make it look like mandatory sewer clean-outs had been installed," according to a Department of Justice statement.

Government officials attributed some of the problems to hasty construction and lack of quality control.

Contracts with the corporation allowed for 1,440 days of construction, but buildings were completed in about 500 days.

The construction took place in 1990, and the Department of Justice filed the suit in November 1998.

Hunt was appointed to the Board of Regents by Gov. George W. Bush this week. The appointment is subject to approval by the Texas Senate.

Anne Friedenberg Swanson, spokesperson for the governor, said the lawsuit was reviewed before the appointment was made.

"We researched the lawsuit and feel the company handled the project in a responsible manner," she said.

Swanson also said research of the suit indicated the construction problems were part of an isolated incident.

"Since the Air Force and the federal government continued to do business with Mr. Hunt's company after they filed the suit, apparently they feel the same way," she said.

Officials at Hunt Building Corp. said the company is currently settling with the government out of court.

"We have reached a settlement with the Department of Defense," said Nena Holcombe, a spokesperson for Hunt.

Specifics of the settlement were not available.

"The settlement was reached last month but they are still ironing out all the details," Holcombe said.

Hunt was not available for comment Thursday.