Town Liable for Overages on Metro Center Work

The town has $29.6 million to complete public portions of the Fairfield Metro Center project - $19.4 million from the state, $5.2 million from the private developer and about $5 million left in town funds - but who pays if the cost of that work exceeds the available money?

That was one of the questions that J. Paul DeMarrais, a member of the town's Inland Wetlands Commission, posed to First Selectman Ken Flatto at a meeting last week, and Flatto's answer was ambiguous.

"Hypotheticals are great, Paul, and I'm thinking right now it's been a long process the last few months. The state has indicated that they have committed what they're committing, so we have to work with what we have and see how this plays out," Flatto replied. "I'm relatively confident, but, again, until this next few months unfolds, we'll see."

Commission member Frank Rice said, "There's such a thing as bonds. When you run a little low, you float a bond."

Rice's comment prompted laughter, which was broken by Flatto saying, "No, no, no. Appreciate the thought."

"I know deep down we all believe some of you wanted to do right from the beginning," Flatto continued. "There may be different opinions about aspects of how to get there, but the goals have been the same for everyone."

An agreement signed in late March by Flatto and Thomas A. Harley, bureau chief of the Bureau of Engineering and Construction at the state Department of Transportation, states that the town has to pay if the cost of work on public portions of the Fairfield Metro Center project exceeds the $29.6 million in available money.

The relevant portion of the document, entitled "The State and Municipality Mutually Agree,"  states:

"That the bond authorization in the amount of Nineteen Million Four Hundred Thousand Dollars ($19,400,000) shall be the maximum participation by the State, which includes the cost of Three Hundred Thousand Dollars ($300,000) for State provided services and Nineteen Million One Hundred Thousand Dollars ($19,100,000) for reimbursement to the Municipality for the State-Town Project. Any and all additional costs for the State-Town Project will be the responsibility of the Municipality. The Municipality shall not use any of the Nineteen Million One Hundred Thousand Dollars ($19,100,000) for other than the State-Town Project."

The work to be performed by the town, and covered by the $29.6 million, includes site grading and capping of contaminated soil; moving contaminated soil away from the shoreline of Ash Creek; constructing a drainage system for the railroad station and parking lot; creating a conservation area required by a permit from the Inland Wetlands Commission; constructing a commuter parking lot for rail commuters of 1,300 to 1,500 spaces; and construction of an interior road.

The town is now soliciting bids and qualifications for a consultant to oversee all of the construction work that needs to take place. The bids and qualifications for overseeing the work are due in Town Purchasing Director Twig Holland's office in Sullivan-Independence Hall at 11 a.m. May 17.

The town is requesting that bidders provide fees as a percentage of the construction cost, which the town identifies as being from $23 million to $25 million, and provide their total estimated fee as a dollar amount.

A selection team comprised of Holland; Office of Community & Economic Development Director Mark Barnhart; Town Engineer William Hurley; First Selectman Ken Flatto; and Town Attorney Richard Saxl are scheduled to review and rate all of the responses and "short list" two to four candidates, who would then be interviewed by the selection team beginning at 9 a.m. May 20 in Sullivan-Independence Hall.

The town, based on proposals and bids received, may suggest "combining services from responsive bidders as a team," according to the bid documents on the town's Web site, www.fairfieldct.org

The candidates would be evaluated by the selection team on:

* professional expertise;

* record of performance for controlling cost, managing quality, performing work as required and ability to commit additional staff in a timely way when requested;

* knowledge of federal, state and town procedures and requirements;

* evidence of any special or innovative approach that the firm will use;

* fee proposal.

Construction work is scheduled to begin in June and last 480 days (or 16 months), according to the bid documents, which would put the completion date in October 2011.

The town's request for bids and qualifications from consultants to oversee the work states that plans and specifications for the construction work are being completed and are expected to be publicly bid on or around May 3. The Purchasing Department's Web site, however, has yet to post a request for bids for construction work. The posted request for bids has to do with overseeing the construction work.

The town did receive bids for work associated with improving off-site intersections to handle heavier traffic, which the town has to pay, and total base bids ranged from $1.9 million from Guerrera Construction and SISCA Northeast to $2.28 million from Cherry Hill Construction. The range on total base bids plus alternates ranged from $2.7 million from Guerrera Construction to $3.2 million from Cherry Hill Construction, according to the Purchasing Department's Web site.

That work wasn't considered to be part of the public portions that were the subject of recent negotiations among the town, state and Blackrock Realty because the town was always supposed to pay for that work and it would take place off-site. Money for that work initially was to come from the $5 million that the town has left from an original $6 million funding request approved by town boards, but the town later received $2.2 million in federal money to help cover the cost.

The Fairfield Metro Center project includes construction of the town's third train station, from 1,300 to 1,500 rail commuter parking spaces and nearly $1 million square feet of commercial development on 35.5 acres at 21 Black Rock Turnpike.

The town and state had to enter into an agreement to get public portions of the project done on Blackrock Realty's property when the developer ran into financial difficulties and TD Banknorth began foreclosure proceedings against the developer. TD Banknorth withdrew its foreclosure action on the day that Gov. M. Jodi Rell, Flatto and DOT officials announced that an agreement had been reached to do work that Blackrock was slated to do under a tri-party agreement signed by the state, town and Blackrock Realty in 2003.