Soggy slowdown
Wet weather pushes construction season far into fallBy JILL SCHRAMM, Staff Writer jschramm@minotdailynews.com
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Motorists who are wondering why they are still navigating construction zones this late in the fall can blame the weather.
A wet fall has extended the construction season and pushed projects past completion deadlines in many cases.
Three large state projects in the Minot area U.S. Highway 83 near Max, the U.S. 2 & 52 bridge at Minot and N.D. Highway 41 through Velva all are behind schedule. All have missed mid-October deadlines, and contractors are paying damages that typically are $1,000 to $2,000 a day for continued delay.
Bob Allen, assistant district engineer with the state highway office in Minot, said the state expects contractors to factor in weather-related delays when they bid on projects. Damage payments reimburse the state for extra engineering costs and traffic inconveniences.
The bridge under construction on Minot's west side is about a week away from completion, providing the weather stays favorable, Allen said. Paving is under way now. Ernie's Concrete of Minot is the contractor.
Some issues with sewer lines slowed the Velva project, but Justin Thurn, project manager with Keller Paving & Landscaping, said the project was on track in mid-September before it was smacked with rain and cold.
"The plan is, obviously, to get it hard-surfaced for the winter," Allen said. "It will be next year before it is completed now."
The paving project calls for three layers of asphalt. The hope is to get two of the layers in place before winter. The last of the storm sewer pipe is going in this week.
Two blocks of the highway, which makes up Velva's Main Street, have been re-opened for parking and traffic. Thurn said paving on the remainder of the street could be complete by the end of next week, weather permitting.
Velva merchants have been understanding about the delay.
"They are patient, but they are ready for it to be done," said Maria Effertz Hanson, director of the McHenry County Job Development Authority. "When it's done, we are going to have a great new road with new lights and wonderful sidewalks."
Effertz Hanson said merchants were planning to host a celebration this fall at the conclusion of the project. That likely will be postponed now until next year.
Keller Paving also is reconstructing and realigning 20th Avenue Southeast in Minot. Facing a completion deadline of Nov. 15, company and city officials aren't saying they won't make it. But they admit the odds aren't good as days get shorter and colder, shrinking the available working hours.
Rusten Roteliuk, city engineer, said the plan never was to complete 20th Avenue this year. Street sealing and permanent striping were scheduled for 2010. However, it appears there might be more work in 2010 than originally intended. How much gets carried over will depend on the number of work days remaining before winter sets in.
The section from Second to Sixth streets is nearly done, and Thurn said paving could start on the middle section next week. The final section to Kroll's Diner is scheduled to be graveled next week. Roteliuk said the road will be at least put into driving condition for the winter if not finished.
It's too early to say how the delay might affect the start of the second phase of the 20th Avenue project, which includes new signaling at 13th Street and the U.S. 2 & 52 Bypass.
"From the city's perspective, it might put a little bit of a crunch into it, but at this time, we don't see it as something we can't work around," Roteliuk said.
The continuation of road work into 2010 could negatively affect contractors who find themselves tied up with old projects when there's new work waiting next spring.
Gratech Co. of Berthold expects to have ditch work remaining next spring on the Highway 83 project near Max, but the roadway will be open this fall. The company has stepped up work in hopes of finishing in another week. The company's subcontractor, Northern Improvement, is working on paving now.
Harley Neshem, Gratech owner, said the Highway 83 project isn't the only one his company is behind on.
"It's everywhere," Neshem said of the weather-related problems contractors have faced this year.
"All the companies that do paving are running behind. They have gotten hardly any paving done in October. It's just been terrible," he said. "It's just not efficient to be paving at this time of year, but everybody still is. We just have no choice."
Weight restrictions on roads after last winter's record snow kept a lot of equipment from getting to work until June, Neshem said. In the case of the Max-area project, by the time federal stimulus money was appropriated and a contract in place, it was July. Neshem said his company had the equivalent of about two months of suitable weather from July through October.
"It's very frustrating, not only for the people that want to use the highway, but for those of us trying to build them," he said.
It's hard on construction employees, too, he said. Employees aren't paid when they can't work, but they might have hotel bills and other expenses related to being at a work site.
