Council authorizes $81,786 change order to repave Blackwater Court after compaction failures

Milford City Council authorized a change order totaling $81,786.50 to repair and repave Blackwater Court after independent compaction tests found the original paving did not meet DelDOT compaction requirements.

Public Works Director Will Schafer told council that during July 2023 paving operations the contractor (CJ Paving) did not conduct the required density tests, and subsequent compaction tests — performed over several months by both the city and the paving contractor — showed compaction ranging from 74% to 91%, below DelDOT’s minimum requirement of 92%.

Staff recommended, and council approved, a change order to the existing street-rehabilitation contract to have the city’s current road contractor mill and repave Blackwater Court; the proposed change order included $80,286.50 for paving and an additional $1,500 for third‑party oversight during the work.

Schafer said Community Bank is holding a letter of credit for the work; once the contractor completes the milling and repaving, the bank will release the $81,786 and the funds will return to the Utility and Street Rehabilitation Fund. The work had previously been authorized administratively with an expectation to proceed; council’s action was required because the change order exceeded $50,000.

Council members asked about inspection practices; staff said there was not a full-time city inspector on site at the time of the original paving, though a consultant inspector from KCI was present. Schafer added that compaction testing is equipment- and certification-dependent and that, typically, the paving contractor is required to conduct quality-control compaction tests during paving.

The motion to approve the change order passed unanimously.