Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Broward’s courthouse construction stalls again
Company doing the work is suing county to get out of deal
Broward County’s courthouse construction has stalled again because of a contract dispute and now the company doing the work is suing the county to get out of the deal.
There’s been little work done as part of the $345.6 million transformation of the downtown Fort Lauderdale complex since a new $197 million, 20-story courthouse tower opened in January 2017. The tower was originally scheduled to open in 2015.
And work on the tower hasn’t been finished yet. County inspectors have required the contractor to make more than 20,000 changes to the new building to meet the original plans, including sealing the exterior walls properly to keep out rain and sealing floors properly to protect against smoke and fire.
Most of the fixes have been made, but officials were not able Wednesday to provide a number or list of items still remaining.
The suit comes as the county is looking to move forward with another $220 million in courthouse projects, including the $130 million replacement of the South Regional Courthouse in Hollywood.
The county plans to pursue major claims against James A. Cummings Inc. and the courthouse’s design team for project delays, cost overruns and other problems. County officials have not commented on the amount of money the county would be seeking to settle the issues.
The previous Fort Lauderdale courthouse building opened in 1962. It was replaced by the new tower and was supposed to be demolished last year to make way for a $14.9 million judicial parking garage and outdoor plaza. It’s still standing.
In addition, the planned $25.8 million renovation of an existing courthouse wing on the east side of the complex hasn’t started.
Cummings and parent company Tutor Perini Building Corp. are suing the county, saying they shouldn’t have to do any more of the work because the county has changed what it wants done without supplying the needed plans or submitting the proper change orders. It is also seeking monetary damages.
In its suit, Cummings claims its courthouse work was to be done in three separate phases. It says the county has now eliminated work on the judicial garage and public plaza and the renovation work to the east wing from its responsibilities.
The contractor says it cannot do some of the work the county still wants completed, such as putting in life-safety items like sprinklers in the east wing because those items were priced as part of an overall renovation of the wing. The county would have to provide new plans for doing the work without the renovation, it said.
Company officials and attor
neys did not return calls requesting comment. County Attorney Drew Meyers said he could not comment on pending litigation.
Assistant County Administrator Alphonso Jefferson said county officials are now figuring out how to complete the renovation of the east wing so the work can be put out for bid. The county is also considering constructing a crime lab and medical examiner’s office on the courthouse campus.
County commissioners in June voted to seek proposals for $220 million in new courthouse work. Besides the replacement Hollywood courthouse, other work includes some of the projects previously part of the work that Cummings had been hired for, including $21.9 million to demolish the old downtown courthouse and build the judicial parking garage and plaza.
In addition, the scope would include $5.5 million to turn the empty 17th floor of the courthouse tower into space for a large, complex trial courtroom. Another $22.7 million is budgeted for improvements to the north wing of the complex, where most criminal trials are held.
The additional courthouse work in downtown Fort Lauderdale is being combined with a new Hollywood courthouse and smaller renovations to regional courthouses in Plantation and Deerfield Beach to better coordinate the scheduling of courtrooms and other facilities during construction, according to county documents.