Ronan finalizes settlement
Hey savvy news reader! Thanks for choosing local.
You are now reading
1 of 3 free articles.
RONAN – The Ronan City Council voted to take money from its storm water account to pay a settlement with PaveCo Contracting and Utilities of Kalispell last week.
The $32,500 final payment was for work that was done a couple of years ago on a walking path project that begins near Les Schwab. The contractor grossly underestimated the cost of materials and labor, according to Mayor Kim Aipperspach. One of the contributing factors to the problem could have been that the estimate provided for digging two feet into the ground, but the contractor went deeper, Aipperspach said.
“When I’m the guy on the backhoe and I’m in a hurry, I’m digging three or four foot,” Aipperspach said. “Well, our contract only allocated money for that two foot, but he’s got slips for all that gravel.”
Councilmember Chris Adler said the arrangement seemed strange.
“It’s supposed to be if you bid a job, and you go over, you take care of it,” Adler said.
But in the contract, the City did not put in a couple of key sentences that would protect itself from being legally bound to pay the excess, Aipperspach said. An attorney advised the city it was unlikely to win a legal dispute over the amount if it went before the jury, although it might fair better before a single judge.
If the case had landed on the desk of a judge or jury and the city was found to be responsible, a $100,000 price tag would likely be assessed for excess materials and PaveCo’s court costs. A mediation process whittled the cost down to an agreed amount of $32,500. Of that amount approximately $18,000 is to be reimbursed from grant funding. The city budgeted $4,500 for the settlement this fiscal year, but needed to find a funding source for $9,839 in additional funds.
The council voted to take $27,839 from the storm water funds, with approximately $18,000 expected to be reimbursed.
In other business, the city approved an open container permit for the St. Patrick’s Day Parade.
