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Rawlins council directs staff to press on with Walnut Street work despite concrete shortfall
Summary
City engineers told council a bid-sheet discrepancy left about 1,350 square yards of concrete unaccounted for, producing an estimated additional cost; council members urged crews to finish the project this season and directed staff to return with a formal change order when exact figures are available.
Cody, the city streets project lead, told the Rawlins City Council on Nov. 2 that the Walnut Street reconstruction has a concrete-quantity shortfall that was not caught in the bid paperwork and will require additional money to complete.
Cody said the project contract was for about $1.436 million, of which roughly $962,000 has been paid, leaving an outstanding contract balance of about $474,000. He estimated an immediate shortfall of about 1,350 square yards of concrete — which he placed in an initial ballpark at $156,000 — but said engineers are “sharpening pencils” and are already reducing the projected overrun to nearer $25,000–$50,000 as they track quantities onsite.
Council members pressed for clarity and timeliness. Councilman Weisenberg and others repeatedly encouraged staff to continue paving and curb work while engineers finalize exact numbers, citing the short window of good weather to complete asphalt work. Cody said crews plan to start asphalt work that week, weather permitting. The council agreed that the contractor had waived a portion of the overage and that the engineering firm was taking deductions; Cody said staff will return with a formal change order when figures are firm.
Councilman Durst urged urgency: “I will finish the freaking road,” he said, emphasizing the community expectation to complete a long-awaited reconstruction. Several council members said they supported pressing forward and asked staff to bring back a documented change order once exact costs are known.
The council also welcomed Austin Gilbert, the new city engineer, who said he recently joined from the Colorado Department of Transportation and plans to tighten specifications and plan review to reduce the chance of similar discrepancies in future contracts.
The council gave direction to continue construction and to return with a change-order request and exact accounting for any additional contract amounts before final acceptance of the project.
