Apply pressure to get CR 491 project in gear

By CHRIS LLOYD

© St. Petersburg Times, published March 1, 2000

Several times each week, I drive County Road 491 between its intersection with State Road 44 and a few miles south to the light at Grover Cleveland. This is the same piece of roadway that is being laboriously widened to four lanes. In a deliberate play on words, I would observe that the element missing from the equation is "labor." This probably accounts for the fact that no discernible progress has been made this year.

Before commenting on the inventory of expensive heavy construction machinery that is routinely idle, I would draw readers' attention to the hundreds -- literally -- of moveable barricades that haphazardly litter the area.

Rather than helping to direct traffic, these barricades serve only to confuse the large number of drivers, particularly during peak periods, who make use of this popular section of road. At night there is no attempt made to illuminate the orange warning lights, which sit atop these items of street furniture, and drivers are left to play a version of Russian roulette while trying to second-guess the preferred routs through the maze.

Those entering CR 491 from Grover Cleveland hoping to make a right turn find themselves particularly challenged. The temporary junction with SR 44, for those intent on heading west, is so dangerously configured as to defy description.

This is no minor county road. Quite the opposite, in fact, as it is used daily by everyone visiting the Lecanto Government Complex and by those attending the adjacent school. Maybe Citrus County commissioners and staff have become acclimated to the pathetically slow rate of progress, but their tolerance probably is not shared by ordinary residents who see this as a fairly simple construction project, not something of a magnitude equal to the building of the Great Wall of China.

When I talked with Chris Karr of the county Public Works Department, he proffered a line of explanation that centered on complex, unforeseen problems the contractor had encountered. He further suggested that much had been accomplished recently, even if it was not visible to the naked eye.

My questions relating to the inclusion of late penalty clauses and binding completion dates prompted the response that this would be prohibitively expensive.

Obviously, the county, when reviewing bids, should award the contract to a company that offers a competitive price, but this should be balanced against a willingness to comply with legally enforceable deadlines.

Karr informed me that the contractor for this project is R. Walker and that the company, not the county or its taxpayers, was paying the bill for the heavy machinery that sits idle day after day.

I strongly contest the accuracy of this statement, and I suggest that any financially competent person would do likewise.

Last year, a spokesman for Walker openly criticized county staff members for their inexperience and implied a lack of project management skills. I wonder how this company would now respond to similar comments regarding its own competence in these areas?

Just a few days ago, one county commissioner told me that he/she had questioned staff on the possibility of terminating Walker's contract but was advised against such a course of action. My preference would be to instruct the county attorney to require Walker to supply detail on the total number of hours workers have put into the project this year and to threaten legal sanctions if the work is not completed within an agreed time period. I would not be generous with the time allowed.

Is it a simple coincidence that the one day last year this project positively buzzed with activity was Oct. 19, the same day area legislators held their annual gathering at the offices of the Citrus County Builders Association on CR 491? For this special occasion, and to showcase their business interests, Walker must have pulled workers off every contract it holds. Perhaps it might do the same again until such time as the work is completed.

Hopefully, from this day forth, Ken Saunders, who heads the Public Works Department, will place a daily telephone call to the chief executive officer of Walker to ensure this fairly simple piece of construction is both better supervised and swiftly concluded. This statement is made more in hope than in expectation, as I suspect that experiences here are too often repeated across the state.

As someone who is on record as opposing Phase II of the Suncoast toll road (Citrus extension), I conclude by inviting readers to ponder the disruption, delays and general chaos we may expect to endure if this major road project receives final approval.

When compared to widening CR 491, the toll road will give those same grossly inefficient construction companies the opportunity to show what they are really incapable of when bankrolled by the bulging pockets of the Florida Department of Transportation.

Chris Lloyd lives in Lecanto. Guest columnists write their own views on subjects they choose, which do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper.

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