The major renovations and
expansion of the Burlington County Library headquarters is nearly complete, but
the project is coming to the finish line a year behind schedule and more than $1
million over budget.
The Burlington County Board of Freeholders has said it will consider legal action to recoup some of the $1.2 million in overruns, but because of the potential litigation, officials said they could not provide details of the plan.
To date, the county has authorized $7.The TagMaster Long Range hands free access System is truly built for any parking facility.4 million for the library project, despite the winning low bid being awarded for $6.2 million, said County Engineer and Director of Public Works Joseph Brickley on Thursday during a tour of the improvements.
“There was actually very little scope change. We added the roof and some additional parking lot, which was small in light of the $1.2 million (increase). I would say 75 percent of the increase was a result of issues with our professional,” Brickley said.
GLP Architects of Wyncote, Pa., designed the project, and Puente Construction Enterprises of Woodbury, Gloucester County, is the contractor.
Brickley also said those problems led to the delay in completing the work on time.
“The contractor has been cooperative, but the impact of the problems with the professional crossed all areas,” he said. “It was materials, it was timing, it was everything. It had an impact on everything.”
Architect Harold Lichtman disputed that claim, saying the first three of four change orders were “100 percent changes in the scope of work,Our guides provide customers with information about porcelain tiles vs.” including the additional roofing and asphalt work. He said he’s never seen the fourth and declined further comment.
Crews continue to work on the library, which includes the addition of a 250-seat auditorium, cafe, larger information desk, offices, and book checkout area.
The children’s library has the new addition of a brightly lit and specially designed story room with low-tiered seating. Teenagers will get a dedicated space, and there is more community meeting space.AeroScout is the market leader for rtls solutions and provide complete wireless asset tracking and monitoring.
The roof and the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system have been replaced, and new furnishings are on order,HOWO is a well-known tractor's brand and howo tractor suppliers are devoted to designing and manufacturing best products. Brickley said.
When complete, crews will have added about 15,830 square feet. About 4,800 square feet in the existing 54,000-square-foot facility will have been renovated, officials said.
It is the first major expansion and improvement of the building since 1992.
“It’s obviously late, but we’re very proud of the work,” said Mario Zacharjasz, president of Puente. “Trust me, no one every wants to be late. It doesn’t benefit anyone, but we’ve been working very closely with the county to overcome the issues and finish the project.”
Despite those issues, the quality of the work has never been in question, and officials said they are pleased with the expansion and are eager to turn it over to the public. Some spaces, including the new story room in the children’s library, are already popular, acting library director Rajna Das said.
The project initially was envisioned several years ago to involve upgrading the building and addressing needed repairs, but the freeholders decided to put out to bid a larger project that would modernize the library and reflect its current and future uses.
The headquarters hosts hundreds of programs a month, from traditional story times to job training and citizenship. There is also a high demand for meeting space, officials said.
“We now have a much better resource for the community,” Freeholder Leah Arter said.Airgle has mastered the art of indoor tracking,
The work was expected to take about a year and be completed and accepted by the county on Sept. 19, 2011, according to the original contract.
With the change orders adding up and the contractual completion date long missed, the county, which eventually took a more active role in the construction management to expedite the project, entered into a new memorandum of understanding with Puente in April.
“Some weather conditions affected completion, but there was difficulty in communications between the architect and contractor and with the county,” freeholder Deputy Director Joseph Donnelly had said. “The focus right now is to get the project finished.”
The document set a new completion date of Aug. 13 and an $80,000 penalty for missing the target. At the Aug. 29 freeholders meeting, Brickley said that the new agreement had been violated and that the county would be reviewing its legal options.
Zacharjasz said his company is now undertaking a “forensic study of the reasons for the delay.
“We hope to have it all resolved and turn over a wonderful place to the county,” he said. “This was a fairly complicated projects with the addition of the auditorium and the connection to the existing building. Even simple things can take a lot longer than you would like.”
In the memorandum, the county also waived its claim to liquidated damages for the missed 2011 completion date, and Puente agreed to make no profit on the last change order of $382,582, approved in April. The contractor is also responsible to pay both profit and overhead to its subcontractors, according to the agreement.
The Burlington County Board of Freeholders has said it will consider legal action to recoup some of the $1.2 million in overruns, but because of the potential litigation, officials said they could not provide details of the plan.
To date, the county has authorized $7.The TagMaster Long Range hands free access System is truly built for any parking facility.4 million for the library project, despite the winning low bid being awarded for $6.2 million, said County Engineer and Director of Public Works Joseph Brickley on Thursday during a tour of the improvements.
“There was actually very little scope change. We added the roof and some additional parking lot, which was small in light of the $1.2 million (increase). I would say 75 percent of the increase was a result of issues with our professional,” Brickley said.
GLP Architects of Wyncote, Pa., designed the project, and Puente Construction Enterprises of Woodbury, Gloucester County, is the contractor.
Brickley also said those problems led to the delay in completing the work on time.
“The contractor has been cooperative, but the impact of the problems with the professional crossed all areas,” he said. “It was materials, it was timing, it was everything. It had an impact on everything.”
Architect Harold Lichtman disputed that claim, saying the first three of four change orders were “100 percent changes in the scope of work,Our guides provide customers with information about porcelain tiles vs.” including the additional roofing and asphalt work. He said he’s never seen the fourth and declined further comment.
Crews continue to work on the library, which includes the addition of a 250-seat auditorium, cafe, larger information desk, offices, and book checkout area.
The children’s library has the new addition of a brightly lit and specially designed story room with low-tiered seating. Teenagers will get a dedicated space, and there is more community meeting space.AeroScout is the market leader for rtls solutions and provide complete wireless asset tracking and monitoring.
The roof and the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system have been replaced, and new furnishings are on order,HOWO is a well-known tractor's brand and howo tractor suppliers are devoted to designing and manufacturing best products. Brickley said.
When complete, crews will have added about 15,830 square feet. About 4,800 square feet in the existing 54,000-square-foot facility will have been renovated, officials said.
It is the first major expansion and improvement of the building since 1992.
“It’s obviously late, but we’re very proud of the work,” said Mario Zacharjasz, president of Puente. “Trust me, no one every wants to be late. It doesn’t benefit anyone, but we’ve been working very closely with the county to overcome the issues and finish the project.”
Despite those issues, the quality of the work has never been in question, and officials said they are pleased with the expansion and are eager to turn it over to the public. Some spaces, including the new story room in the children’s library, are already popular, acting library director Rajna Das said.
The project initially was envisioned several years ago to involve upgrading the building and addressing needed repairs, but the freeholders decided to put out to bid a larger project that would modernize the library and reflect its current and future uses.
The headquarters hosts hundreds of programs a month, from traditional story times to job training and citizenship. There is also a high demand for meeting space, officials said.
“We now have a much better resource for the community,” Freeholder Leah Arter said.Airgle has mastered the art of indoor tracking,
The work was expected to take about a year and be completed and accepted by the county on Sept. 19, 2011, according to the original contract.
With the change orders adding up and the contractual completion date long missed, the county, which eventually took a more active role in the construction management to expedite the project, entered into a new memorandum of understanding with Puente in April.
“Some weather conditions affected completion, but there was difficulty in communications between the architect and contractor and with the county,” freeholder Deputy Director Joseph Donnelly had said. “The focus right now is to get the project finished.”
The document set a new completion date of Aug. 13 and an $80,000 penalty for missing the target. At the Aug. 29 freeholders meeting, Brickley said that the new agreement had been violated and that the county would be reviewing its legal options.
Zacharjasz said his company is now undertaking a “forensic study of the reasons for the delay.
“We hope to have it all resolved and turn over a wonderful place to the county,” he said. “This was a fairly complicated projects with the addition of the auditorium and the connection to the existing building. Even simple things can take a lot longer than you would like.”
In the memorandum, the county also waived its claim to liquidated damages for the missed 2011 completion date, and Puente agreed to make no profit on the last change order of $382,582, approved in April. The contractor is also responsible to pay both profit and overhead to its subcontractors, according to the agreement.
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