Key West City Hall project delayed another two months

BY PRU SOWERS

KONK LIFE STAFF WRITER

 

Despite assurances from contractor Burke Construction Group two months ago that there would be no more “major” change orders that would increase the budget or further delay the move-in date at the new Josephine Parker City Hall, that is exactly what has happened.

City Manager Jim Scholl told city commissioners he has been informed by the contractor that the Aug. 1 “substantial completion date” will be pushed back a second time, to Sept. 24. The original March 1, 2016 construction completion date was moved to Aug. 1 two months ago due to unforeseen weather delays and rain damage to the interior of the historic building on White Street.

The financial impact of the newest two-month delay is unclear, Scholl said. The contract with Burke Construction calls for the contractor to pay monetary penalties if the May 16 substantial completion date is missed. Scholl said any possible financial hit to Burke will be negotiated later this month but it might include the contractor picking up the $37,500 the city currently pays each month to rent office space in Habana Plaza. But there is also a little more than $200,000 left in the building contingency fund that could possibly be tapped for all or part of any new cost overruns.

Scholl said the reason for the latest two-month delay is that an interior materials subcontractor cannot meet the existing delivery schedule. Glass panels that will be used throughout the inside of the new City Hall plus some other materials delays are the culprit, he said.

“The manufacturer has more work than they can produce. Building [in the area] is booming. That has some collateral impacts. A lot of minor things but it all adds up,” Scholl said, adding, “It’s gone very, very well so far. We just got delayed here more than anyone anticipated. The goal is still to get the building done properly.”

The original contract signed with Burke Construction was just under $15 million. The current budget estimate is approximately $18.8 million. However, if the contingency fund is left at its current level, that budget number would come down.

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