Contractor sues small Pierce County town over delayed trail improvements
A general contractor for a project to extend the Foothills Trail in Wilkeson has sued the town, alleging the work took longer and cost nearly $546,000 more than the amount in the contract.
The project in 2018 involved “a parking lot, roadway improvements, storm water improvements, signage and rehabilitation of a footbridge, among other additions and improvements,” the contractor’s lawsuit said.
The contractor, HBHansen, alleges the cost was increased and the timeline delayed because the town made changes to the project and because of unforeseen circumstances. The company argues it hasn’t been properly paid for the extra work, and that the town breached their contract.
The Town Council, an attorney court records list as representing Wilkeson, and attorneys representing the company did not respond to New Tribune messages seeking comment.
The lawsuit, filed last month in Pierce County Superior Court, gives this account of what happened:
The work was supposed to take 60 days and be finished Dec. 12, 2018.
“The final as-built schedule prepared by HBHansen shows that the impacts and delays caused by the Town and its agents delayed the critical path of the project by 96 working days,” the lawsuit said. “As a result of the scope additions, unforeseen site conditions, errors and omissions, HBHansen experienced significant time delays and cost increases for the Project that total at least $545,843.90 over the original contract amount.”
One example is that CenturyLink was supposed to move utilities before the project, but that didn’t happen, which caused delay.
There were also “hazardous levels of lead” in a “thick tar-like layer under the remaining existing paint and rust on the bridge” that needed to be abated, the lawsuit said.
When the contractor found the lead, the lawsuit alleges: “the Town initially denied knowledge of the issue,” but later disclosed there had been “a lead study (hazardous materials assessment) – which found lead on the bridge – but the Town did not notify nor provide HBHansen this information until after the work was performed.”
The company said it didn’t realize the town did not have the money to finish the project.
“The Town has not taken a position on whether HBHansen is due the amounts claimed in this Complaint,” the lawsuit said. “While the Town has not taken a position on responsibility, it did seek funds from the State of Washington to pay for the added costs and represented to the State that these funds were owed. Specifically, the Town represented to the State that: ‘There have been several unforeseen issues that have caused significant delays and drastically increased the town’s financial liability since the construction phase began on this project.’”
