Nueces County approves change order for Bob Hall Pier after questions about contractor work and budgeting
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Summary
Nueces County Commissioners unanimously approved Change Order No. 4 to the Callan/Cal Marine contract for Bob Hall Pier, adding decking, ADA ramp work and other items; commissioners pressed staff on prior change orders and contractor practices and agreed to take some questions into executive session.
The Nueces County Commissioners Court unanimously approved Change Order No. 4 to the Callan (Cal Marine) contract for the Bob Hall Pier project after staff described additional decking, ADA ramp adjustments and gap-filling work that was outside the contractor’s original scope.
County construction staff told the court the changes were vetted and would extend the pier’s lifespan. "This is work that was researched. It was vetted. We checked costs. We evaluated the contractor's proposals to do this work," a county construction manager said during the presentation. County staff and the construction manager said the project remains under budget.
Several commissioners pressed staff for clarity on how prior change orders affected the contract total and whether some work had proceeded without prior written approval. "I just remember we have to remember in the future that what we're doing today," one commissioner said, expressing concern that contractors might do work informally and later seek payment. County staff responded that denied requests had not been paid and that the county had denied some Callan change orders in the past.
A commissioner asked to discuss related contractor questions in executive session; the court agreed to bring item B-1 into executive session before finalizing associated questions. The formal vote on Change Order No. 4 followed the executive-session scheduling and passed unanimously.
The court’s discussion also reviewed the larger project budget, earlier deductive change orders (where work moved to other contractors), and contingency planning. Construction staff characterized earlier reductions in Callan’s contract as part of normal project adjustments and said certain deductions had been transferred to other contractors working on the restaurant or parking components of the larger project.
The court scheduled a ribbon-cutting for the pier on April 20 and reiterated that remaining elements of the project (including the restaurant and parking) will be completed using contingency or other identified funds.
The court directed staff to bring specific contractor questions to executive session for further review and approved the change order in open court.
