City will borrow $1.1M to get grout out of pipe

The amount brings the cost of repairs related to the Washington Avenue sinkhole to more than $9 million.

The city will borrow $1.1 million to pay a local contractor to remove grout that has been plugging the Washington Avenue sewer pipe since a sinkhole there was repaired.

The Common Council voted 8-1 Tuesday to adopt two resolutions authorizing the city to borrow the money for the work and related expenses and to contract with Arold Construction Co. of Kingston to perform the grout removal. Alderwoman Maryann Mills cast the “no” votes.

“Not that I don’t believe that Washington Avenue needs to be fixed and needs to be fixed right, but I think the contractors and people need to take accountability for mistakes they may have made,” Mills, D-Ward 7, said in explaining her vote.

Alderman Reynolds ScottChildress disagreed with Mills.

“We are, in fact, going to look into all possibilities here, but we have to be patient,” said ScottChildress, D-Ward 3. “We have to do it the right way.” He said if city officials move too fast, it could “screw things up” and then Kingston would not get what it deserves.

Timothy Moot, a principal with the firm Clark Patterson Lee, previously told the council that Arold was the sole bidder for the work, offering a base of $833,250. The bid included a provision for an additional $30,000 payment if the company has to use a second method to remove the grout blocking the tunnel, he said.

The $1.1 million being borrowed would cover the costs of the repairs, as well as contingency expenses that may arise. It also would be used to pay Clark Patterson Lee $90,000 for construction administration and observation services during the repair.

Clark Patterson Lee designed the project that Arold bid on.

The grout blockage occurred during the five year repair of the sinkhole that opened on Washington Avenue in April 2011. During the repair, grout somehow penetrated a new sewer lining, blocking a portion of the pipe.

Last Nov. 2, the Common Council voted to borrow $150,000 for design of the project to remove the grout blockage, as well as to fund ongoing rental fees for a pump system being used to bypass the clogged section of the sanitary sewer system.

With the newly authorized borrowing, the city’s costs related to the sinkhole have risen to more than $9 million.

Additional costs could result from a lawsuit filed by neighbors of the sinkhole who say the repair work damaged their homes.