(Spirit Lake)– It’s going to take longer than first thought to get the first phase of the new Dickinson county courthouse built.
Dickinson county supervisor Paul Johnson says the contractor informed them at a meeting late last week that he will not be able to meet the original time frame that was proposed for the project. To be realistic, he says it should be pushed back by three months. Under the original time frame, the first phase was slated for completion this coming September. Now, it won’t be until December 23rd.
Johnson says the contractor sited several factors in the delay, including delays in material delivery; complexity of the project itself; and a local shortage of skilled laborers. Johnson says the contractor told the supervisors he could have crews work around the clock seven days a week. But he warned them the quality of their work would probably reflect that.
Steel workers have been pulled off the project to work on another project the general contractor has going on in the Sioux City area.
It appears there isn’t a whole lot the county can do about the delay, since a completion deadline was not included in bid specs for the project. Johnson said the supervisors did that intentionally hoping it would encourage more favorable bids.
Johnson says there is a bright side to the situation in that the county will have more time to plan the transition moves. He adds the delay should not result in the county incurring any added cost per se.
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