Nearly a year after the ribbon cutting for the project last August, the 1st Avenue improvement project between 192 and 200 street in Normandy Park is overdue and over-budget, with plenty of blame being thrown around.

Normandy Park City Manager Doug Shulze said at the end of March that work was expected to be completed by the end of May or early June. He is now saying they hope to have the road and construction work completed by the end of July.
The city received a federal stimulus grant for $3.6 million, which was expected to cover the entire project.

Shulze says there are some change orders pending from the contractor, Pivetta Brothers Construction, in the amount of $100,000-$200,000. Any additional money required to finish the project will have to be paid by the city, Shulze said.
One of the requirements for receiving the federal grant was that the city have a "shovel ready" project-- meaning the project was completely designed and ready for work to begin immediately.

Mark Pivetta, president of Pivetta Brothers, said he did not feel they were given a shovel ready project.
"Construction has been significantly delayed due to the owners' incomplete plans and specifications. These delays have compounded as the owner has not timely completed the necessary planning to finish construction," Pivetta said.

Shulze said the Department of Transportation approved the project as shovel ready before giving the city the grant. Shulze said there have been a number of issues complicating the progress of the project, including weather and an unexpected concrete superstructure underneath 1st Avenue.

However, Shulze said, the largest issue "has been a lack of understanding of the plans by the contractor."
The intersection at 192nd and 1st Avenue will be closed for the entire month of June as a concrete superstructure found underneath it is removed and the street is essentially rebuilt.
The city knew there was concrete from the original 1st Avenue underneath the current asphalt road, but neither the city nor the state transportation department could say exactly where it was.

"A lot of things underground were not where they were shown to be on maps," Shulze said.
Work on the intersection has slowed as approximately 300 yards of gravel has to be removed, as it does not meet the city's specifications or pass compaction tests, Shulze said.
The city is also working on what to do with sections of the recently poured sidewalk along the east side of the road that do not meet the city's specifications, said Shulze.

An additional 17 workdays was added to the contract for various design issues and weather delays, Shulze said. He said Pivetta Brothers requested another 30 days for design issues, which the city is continuing to negotiate with the contractor whether or not the additional time is needed.
Not everyone has been happy with the improvements. Many business owners in the newly built Normandy Park Town Center are complaining the construction is driving business away.

Road construction, in addition to a reduced speed limit along the stretch from 45 mph to 25 mph, has made traveling the road a hassle.
"I understand that road or utility work of any kind is an inconvenience to residents, businesses and visitors to Normandy Park," Pivetta said. "We assure you Pivetta Brothers is making every effort to finish the project as soon as possible. I am confident the residents and businesses will find the project to be an asset to the Normandy Park community."

Archery Bistro's owners said in March they felt the construction was responsible for the number of lunchtime customers during the week dropping from 100-150 on a Friday afternoon down to 30. The Bistro recently stopped serving lunch.
When completed, the project will have installed sidewalks and a bike lane on both sides of the road, as well as street and pedestrian lighting and four bus shelters, two in each direction.

Normandy Park hopes to begin designing what is being referred to as 1st Avenue improvements phase three at the beginning of next year. The project would involve road improvements between 172nd Street and 192nd street on 1st Avenue.

Shulze said the city is looking for another federal grant to fund the project, and, assuming the Normandy Park finds funding, he hopes the project will be completed sometime in late 2011 or early 2012.