Standard Construction — Specifications

The words hit Arthur like a slap. Obsolete . He had written that spec. It was not obsolete; it was tested . It had survived the 1994 Northridge quake. It had held up hospitals and fire stations.

“They’re calling it a ‘performance-based alternative.’” standard construction specifications

Arthur looked out the window at the skyline—the cranes, the half-built towers, the invisible lattice of steel and concrete and specifications that kept it all from falling down. The words hit Arthur like a slap

Arthur finally raised his eyes. “A variance.” the half-built towers

Priya nodded slowly. Then she left.