Change order increases cost of Maple Road project

A truck heads east Friday on a portion of Humbolt Street/Maple Road near the Fort Scott Livestock Market. Bourbon County Commissioners on Tuesday signed a change order on a project to make improvements on Maple Roa

Jason E. Silvers

A project being funded with a $350,000 Kansas Department of Transportation High Risk Rural Roads Grant awarded in 2014 is still not underway.

On Tuesday, Public Works Director Jim Harris presented commissioners with a change order to include a cross road pipe – a culvert that was overlooked in the construction plan.

Harris said the change order will cost an additional $43,117, with the county responsible for 10 percent of that amount.

“It’s already been approved by KDOT,” Harris said. “They can’t move forward without you gentlemen’s approval.”

He said he asked why the “architect did not participate” in the cost of the change order as it was their error, but he was told “that’s just part of it.”

The project is nearing a point when “the contractor could yell ‘penalty’ because of delaying the project,” Harris said.

Commissioners approved the change order request from Shafer, Kline & Warren of Lenexa, engineers for the project.

The county has already cut down trees along the road curve in preparation of the project.

“We need to get it done and behind us,” Harris said.

History of the project

Originally the county believed the grant would fund road improvements on a portion of a county road that becomes a Fort Scott city road, stretching from National Avenue to 205th Street on Humbolt Street/Maple Road.

The county then learned because the city did not apply for the grant, the state would fund only the portion within the county.

The state’s plan had been to widen Maple Road from 22 feet to 30 feet, which will require grading and culvert work. However, the original plan shows the road will remain at 22 feet wide.

On June 23, 2015, the city and county agreed the city would pay for the remaining balance for design and inspection costs regarding a county road at the industrial park, while the county would take care of the city’s portion of costs related to construction from Humbolt Street to National Avenue as part of the county’s Maple Road project.

The county also agreed to provide future maintenance of the road at the industrial park after its completion.