The Knox Wastewater Treatment Plant project has hit another snag. Thieneman Construction has objected to the city’s deduction of $7,000 from its payment, following a concrete pouring accident last year that led to the need for an unanticipated cold joint in the basement wall.
The contractor also failed to put rubber gaskets around the plastic pipes at the two manholes on either side of the building. Both of those issues increased the risk of leaks.
Engineer Steve Henschen with Jones Petrie Rafinski told the board of works Wednesday that after further negotiations, Thieneman has offered to provide a $7,000 maintenance bond instead. “Ultimately, we offered a contract setoff and said, ‘This is it,’” Henschen noted. “They counter-offered, so the city’s being flexible with them. If they say, ‘We can’t do it,’ then we go back to our original offer, which is, ‘We don’t pay you that $7,000 that you’re asking for.’”
Thieneman apparently did not object to a separate $5,000 deduction to reimburse the city for having to clear out a grit line, after chunks of concrete somehow got in and clogged the pump.
In the end, the board of works agreed to accept Thieneman’s offer and pay the $7,000, but only if the term of the maintenance bond is at least 10 years. The goal is to get the project grant closed out as soon as possible. It should have been done by the end of January. Delaying it could put future grants in jeopardy, such as COVID-19 Response Program money for local businesses or Blight Clearance Program funding to tear down the former Moose Lodge.
