November 2, 2022 |
In Saratoga, town officials remain unconvinced that the contractor will be able to complete the Spring Avenue water line replacement project before snow and cold shuts down operations for the winter.
On Tuesday, representatives from the town and Lewis and Lewis Paving, the contractor hired to replace the aging water infrastructure under Spring Avenue. As reported previously, ground water in the bore pit at Spring Avenue and First Street caused delays, pushing the project past its original late-October completion date. With winter weather approaching, prospects for completing the job this year look less than promising.
Rod McCormick with the contracting firm fielded questions from the town about ability to pave the torn-up road surface. Richard Raymer, the chairman of the local Joint Powers Water and Sewer Board, expressed concerns that weather would force Lewis and Lewis to abandon their plan. Raymer asked McCormick how his team was preparing to deal with the encroaching winter.
Pictured above: Spring Avenue bore pit. Photo by Bigfoot 99.
Southern Wyoming has experienced unseasonably mild weather the past few days. Paving must be done when temperatures are above 40 degrees. Raymer said Lewis and Lewis had wasted three opportune days to lay asphalt. When asked why, McCormick said he was as surprised by the mild temperatures as everyone else.
Snow is in the forecast. Today is the last day for the foreseeable future when the contractors can lay asphalt for a while. T-O Engineering’s Josh Morris said more work needs to be done on the streets before the entirety of the paving could be finished. Raymer said Lewis and Lewis could lay asphalt up to a point.
If temperatures are too low when paving, the blacktop won’t properly compact, causing the road surface to be easily damaged, especially when plowed. The town has discussed the subject with the contractor at previous meetings. Morris told Lewis and Lewis’ representative the town would not accept rushed or poorly paved streets. McCormick agreed with Morris.
Aside from paving, Councilman Ron Hutchins mentioned seeing cracks on a small retaining wall by the community center. He said he wasn’t sure if the damage was caused by the contractors or not, but he asked McCormick to have his crew fill the cracks while they were working in the area.
McCormick agreed to look into repairing the wall.
The contractor has been finding buried pipes and cables that were not listed on any plans and are working around those issues. The town had no safety or traffic control concerns.
The clock is ticking on the Spring Avenue water line replacement project. Lewis and Lewis can’t afford to squander any warm days if they intend to finish paving before winter forces them to pack up for the season.
