Date: Fri 30-May-1997

Publication: Bee

Author: STEVEB

Quick Words:

library-BTI-selectmen

Full Text:

Meeting Set On Fate Of Library Contractor

B Y S TEVE B IGHAM

A meeting to discuss the possible removal of the general contractor at the

library was scheduled for Thursday morning after press time.

The bonding company, Fidelity & Guaranty Insurance Company of Massachusetts,

is on the hook for a $3,100,000 bond. It could end up deciding to remove the

contractor, Building Technologies, Inc (BTI), from the project for what the

town claims has been poor management of the $4.1 million project.

Town officials and BTI were expected to each present their side of the story

over why the Cyrenius Booth Library project has had so many problems and been

delayed so long. Presently, progress on the library's new addition has been

slow and work is at a halt inside the existing building.

Why the delays? It depends on who you ask. The town says a lack of manpower

has made the progress slow on the addition, while the contractor claims

unexpected problems on the roof and general construction delays have held

things up. As for the existing building, the town has test results that

conclude all asbestos has been removed from the walls and ceilings, a project

that delayed work to the interior by some six months. BTI will not go back

into the building, however, claiming its consultant found traces of the

carcinogenic material upon inspection.

First Selectman Bob Cascella said Wednesday that the town does not have to

rely on the bonding company to make a decision. "The town can choose to

terminate BTI from the job if it wishes," he said.

Dumpsters Removed

Truckers removed two dumpsters containing asbestos from the Cyrenius Booth

Library construction site last Friday - six months after they had been filled.

Last December, the project's asbestos removal contractor, PETCO, removed the

asbestos from the existing building. However, the asbestos abatement company

refused to have the dumpsters hauled away, claiming the town hadn't paid it in

full for certain duties it performed.

PETCO's hauler, Logano Trucking, took the dumpsters out. According to Public

Building & Site Committee Chairman Frank Krasnickas, the normal charge for

renting and picking up the dumpsters is $2,100 each, but Logano charged the

town an extra $45 for each week they were not returned. That brought the grand

total to $6,540, an expense the town said it will seek to have PETCO pay.

The town recently received a citation from the state's Department of

Environmental Protection (DEP) for the dumpster's long stay on the site.