Crown Point board approves $1.59 million pay-item authorization for downtown interceptor project

The Crown Point Board of Public Works and Safety on Wednesday approved change order No. 2 for the downtown interceptor project, authorizing $1,585,440.83 in pay items that will allow the contractor to draw against the city's budgeted utility conflict allowance and construction contingency. The board also agreed to a 30-day time extension for the contractor.

City staff explained the change order is a mechanism for compensating unanticipated subsurface conflicts discovered under Main Street during a unit-price contract. Staff said the city carries a roughly $6.1 million utility conflict allowance and construction contingency to cover such events and that the change order brings anticipated pay items onto the contract so work can continue without delay.

Public works staff described the conflict as an encasement buried about 20 feet below the state road, requiring excavation and sheeting that cannot be handled through standard potholing. The change order sets not-to-exceed costs for discrete pay items to be tracked on a time-and-material basis; staff negotiated a 30-day extension of the contractor's schedule (the contractor had requested 121 days; staff supported 30 days at this time).

The board voted to approve the change order after staff indicated the change and contingency funding had been anticipated in project budgeting. A board member thanked staff for keeping the board informed and noted the intersection work was progressing and restorations were forthcoming.

Staff said phase one restorations should be complete in the coming weeks and work in phase two at Liberty Park is progressing. The project team will return to the board with final documentation as work proceeds.

The board approved the change order by voice vote; staff will file the executed change order with contract records and continue to report schedule and cost impacts at future meetings.