100% cost overrun on Laurelhurst Park pond cleanout
Bid at $398,000, it's winding up costing $800,000. With more expense to come as Portland Parks throws in a new aeration system.
After all that, the pond will still be contaminated with PCBs. Getting them out would have added easily another million dollars onto the price tag. What a mess.
| Posted at 4:58 PM | Permalink |
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Comments (8)
With the price of steel going up, the dollar going down, and Portlanders expecting their duckponds to be postcard perfect, it would be cheap at twice the price. We're just lucky that we have our Dear Leader to supervise this grass-through-a-goose cleanup.
Posted by Mister Tee | January 10, 2011 7:23 PM
Lets face it. There are some days when it is good to be a duck, and then there are the other days.
Posted by Gibby | January 10, 2011 8:14 PM
Quit picking on the city Jack! You are hurting Randy's feewings!
/sarcasm
Posted by Snards | January 10, 2011 9:30 PM
I just walked by there and was surprised how LITTLE work had been done. Sure, some parts had been dug out pretty extensively. But that quote about deepening the pond to 8 feet is just specious... the west end of the pond is still about 1-2 feet maximum depth.
Posted by PJB | January 10, 2011 11:06 PM
Once again, I plead: Doesn't anyone in City Hall know how to write a contract that is not open-ended? In this case, how can you think of dredging before some serious tests on what substances are to be removed? One could cry over this ineptitude.
Posted by Don | January 11, 2011 8:57 PM
Under Portland's commissioner form of government, the bureaus are run by politicians, who are rarely qualified. And competent people who speak up are quickly drummed out of the ranks, leaving few who actually know what they are doing.
Posted by Jack Bog | January 11, 2011 9:01 PM
Refresh my memory -- PCB's in a duck pond? Someone dump some old PPL transformers in there? How did that stuff get in the pond?
Posted by concordbridge | January 11, 2011 11:50 PM
One would think some serious tests would be done before submitting a bid. This could be done in stages, a budget for the preliminary work to determine what is involved and whether or how to proceed regarding the magnitude of the project and in preparing a bid.
This 100% cost overrun? - quite frankly, the entire project looks to be a mess. Wonder if it is even safe to walk around the park now?
Who is to be held accountable?
Nick Fish, Commissioner of Parks?
Zari Santner, Parks Director?
Schlepping toxic materials to a Cully park, did they? What is the status of that?
If they did, so wrong to take unwanted materials and dump them in another neighborhood park!
Posted by clinamen | January 12, 2011 10:56 AM