Extra costs for Bell Street bridge OK’d

In a unanimous 8- vote, the council accredited spending Speece Lewis Engineers an supplemental $165,375 for engineering services linked to the design and style and development of the Bell Road Viaduct Rehabilitation job.

The charge improve arrived right after Speece officers established extra operate than envisioned is required on the significant bridge in the south aspect of the city that spans Union Pacific railroad tracks. The additional maintenance do the job will have to have much more engineering and setting up files and do the job, primary to the metropolis shelling out a full of be $316,088.16 in expenses.

Justin Zetterman, interim director of public works for the metropolis, explained the expense hike to council.

“It is variety of ensuing from two different points. The major issue is the amount of several hours (worked). When it was scoped out, we experienced no style and design perform to foundation the construction on. It was approximated at 12 months to get this completed. It will be at minimum double that time,” he claimed. “There will be substantially additional on-web site inspection and design. We do not have the manpower nor the structural information of challenges to do that. We will be relying on their expertise.”

Ward 3 Council Member James Vaughan requested Zetterman for additional information on the issue.

“I have no question this is required, but how did this viaduct get so poor,” Vaughan questioned. “How did we not observe this was deteriorating at these kinds of a fee?”

Zetterman available up what he understood about the repairs and the background of the structure in response.

“Bi-yearly inspections are done on all constructions. I really do not know when this was to start with seen. I really don’t know if carrying out it 5 years in the past would have created it any unique,” Zetterman replied. “We nevertheless have to carry this bridge up. You have to elevate up a bridge, slide it in excess of and restore the abutments.”

Ward 4 Council Member Sally Ganem requested why the bridge is deteriorating.

Zetterman claimed the as the solar warms the bridge, the resources it is created of broaden and that repetitive physics and geologic process will cause the bridge to slide off its abutments.

“The the vast majority of it is construction and inspection (costs). It is for engineering,” Zetterman claimed, incorporating that the building is now expected to very last 7 months, not 6 as initially predicted. “It is a crucial piece of infrastructure.”

The project’s exact start out day is not nonetheless regarded, but metropolis officials have mentioned in earlier interviews that it should really start in spring of 2023. The building will lead to the entire closure of the bridge for the whole venture.

In accordance to a staff report on the situation prepared by Zetterman, the added fees had been added soon after engineers discovered the undertaking much more complicated and would need considerably additional design time than was initially estimated.

A 2nd agenda item associated to the Bell Street viaduct was also authorised in an 8- vote on Feb. 28, which will see the city spend Union Pacific Railroad $25,000 so the enterprise can critique the Bell Road Viaduct repair plans. The bridges goes in excess of UP railroad tracks on the south facet of Fremont.

Resolution 2023-045 is, “to enter into an agreement with the Union Pacific Railroad for their management and evaluation of the Bell Street Viaduct Rehabilitation challenge.