365 Tollway: wetland mitigation finished, gantries going up; contractor seeks early value-engineering payment and board denies advance

Ramon Navarro, chief construction engineer for the Hidalgo County Regional Mobility Authority, provided a project update on the 365 Tollway, reporting that several construction packages are advancing while utility relocations and irrigation-district approvals are causing localized delays.

Navarro said the wetland mitigation site, a conversion of about 23.2 acres, completed final walk-throughs and closed out at approximately $5,710,902.91, with remaining items to be addressed through Army Corps permitting and a plant-survey schedule. "We wrapped all this up for a total of approximately, it was summed out to $5,710,902.91," Navarro said, and added that the contractor provided manuals of operation to Valley Land Fund.

Navarro also reported progress on tolling integration: the first gantry for the CSET (central system equipment and tolling) has been erected and the contractor committed to have all gantries installed by August so camera installation and factory tests can begin.

On the heavy-highway construction package with Paulus Construction, Navarro said the team has issued 15 change orders and is reviewing change order 16, which covers switching from dual to single gantries; that change was estimated to produce savings, and Navarro said the savings estimate was substantially less than originally forecast (the item under review showed $335,000 in estimated savings).

Utility conflicts were a recurring theme. Navarro said three AEP transmission-line poles, including one within a levee footing and one within a drainage area, are constraining work in the Jackson Road area. Navarro said ERCOT switching to allow the line relocation is targeted for July 13 with an expectation that poles will be cleared by July 31 so construction can resume in that corridor.

The San Juan Main Canal bridge remains delayed while staff awaits a pumping-plan approval from the Hidalgo County Irrigation District. Navarro described a proposed approach that would install a pumping system (he referenced a $667,000 pumping system in the discussion) to avoid erosion and bypass issues and said the RMA expects a plant survey and quarterly monitoring to follow project completion.

Navarro provided a performance update showing the construction contract approaching two-thirds complete; he cited a contract cumulative total approximately $178,588,101.06 and a completion percentage reported in the presentation (about 66.99% at the time of the update).

Paulus Construction President Victor Jimenez participated virtually and asked the board to consider advancing milestone payments tied to value-engineering change-proposal savings that are scheduled to be paid as milestones (20%, 40%, 60%, 80%, 100%). Jimenez said construction impacts tied to utilities had slowed his cash flow and that the contractor could provide additional bonding if the board sought further assurances.

The board discussed the request and, after a motion, voted to deny the resolution seeking advancement of the 80%/100% value-engineering savings payments. A director explained a preference to consider advancing a single payment at a later date rather than both milestones now. Navarro said the milepost structure was designed so savings are realized after quantities are delivered and verified.