A $2.4 million San Juan County bridge replacement project stopped in mid-November after a structural failure was discovered, prompting an investigation.
Nick Porell, county public works director, told the San Juan County commissioners Tuesday that a wall attached to the new bridge’s culvert over County Road 3000 “slumped” during construction.
“I had a chance to examine the damage yesterday and it is indeed significant,” said Porell. “There are a fair number of parts on that wing wall that require replacement.”
Porell said he issued a stop-work order to the builder – Albuquerque-based Hasse Contracting – Monday, allowing the damage to be thoroughly investigated as engineers and culvert suppliers tied to the project weigh in on what’s next.
“I don't have what the ultimate outcome will be in terms of schedule impacts. I will say that everything is fixable. It's just a matter of ordering parts and pieces and providing the contractor with the adequate engineering direction on how this needs to be resolved.”
According to a background description of the construction from the county, Bridge 3121 closed in March for a one-year projected replacement. A contract was awarded to Hasse to lead the endeavor at a price tag of $2,425,300.
According to county documents, Bridge 3121 closed in March for a one-year replacement. A contract was awarded to Hasse for $2,425,300.
The bridge, built in the 1970s over Jones Arroyo, carries an average of 2,300 vehicles daily between Aztec and Flora Vista. Once replaced, the new bridge is expected to last 80 years.
Originally, the road closure was expected to last four months, but a July 28 update said construction faced delays, including late part deliveries.
Installation of the bridge’s arch culvert and head and wing walls began in September, with backfilling in October.
By early November, the county said, “there will be no further update until after Dec. 12 when weather will be the deciding factor in paving operations.”
That was before Porell got a call from the contractor about the structural failure of a wing wall attached to the culvert.
Porell said the stop-work notice issued to Hasse Monday was “not intended to be punitive.”
“It's more so we need to halt all activity, basically remove the contractor's authority to continue work while that's investigated by us as the owner, (and by) our engineering team, the culvert supplier.”
Porell said engineers and culvert suppliers were traveling from Texas, Albuquerque and Phoenix for a meeting planned later this week.
Further describing the problem with photos, Porell said the wall “slumped,” but remained upright and did not collapse.
“When a structure holding that much weight moves, it will cause some damage.”
As for considering a different contractor, Porell said projects like this typically allow space for fixing errors.
“After the investigation, is there a possibility of us acquiring a totally different contractor to finish the job?” Commissioner Sam Gonzales asked.
“At this point in time, they haven't violated the terms of that contract,” said Porell. “They are required to deliver a product that meets the specifications of our agreement.”
“Unfortunately, in my experience, there are issues on most construction contracts and a contractor needs to be afforded the ability to correct them.”
Whether caused by a product failure, contractor error or design flaw, Porell said he did not yet know.
“Obviously, I think all of us want this project completed as expeditiously as possible,” said Porell. “But at the end of the day, we want a structure that's going to be there a year from now – 20 years from now.”
