SHARON Span builder will face fines

A detailed corrective action plan is to be given to the county Wednesday.
By HAROLD GWIN
VINDICATOR SHARON BUREAU
MERCER, Pa. -- Correcting the misalignment problem with the Oakland Avenue Viaduct in Sharon will take until at least early June, according to Mark Miller, Mercer County bridge engineer.
Miller said an engineering firm working on the correction plan on behalf of Carmen Paliotta Contracting of Library, Pa., the bridge contractor, said that even if all of its plans are approved, the best timetable for completing the work is June 2.
The company doesn't have that long before it has to start paying a $650 daily penalty for being late on the project.
Construction history
The $3.6 million bridge replacement, financed with state and federal money, was to be completed in November 2001, but the county stopped work as the contractor was preparing to pour the concrete deck, leaving the company with 55 calendar days to finish the bridge.
A misalignment problem had resulted in the bridge deck's having a slight "S" shape.
The county and the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, which is overseeing the work, weren't concerned about the safety of the 300-foot span over the Shenango Valley Freeway in Sharon, but they were concerned that the misalignment might shorten the lifespan of the bridge.
They directed Paliotta to come up with a plan to correct the misalignment.
The company finally came up with a proposal in November 2002 to correct the problem by jacking up the steel support arches and slipping metal shim plates over the concrete pedestals that support the arches.
Both the county and PennDOT said the plan is acceptable and the county asked Paliotta to come up with a definitive timetable and scope of work by Dec. 31.
Mercer County commissioners said that a company submission on that date was only a concept paper and not a detailed corrective plan.
That prompted the commissioners to start the clock Jan. 1 on the 55 days left in the contract. When the 55 days are up, Paliotta will be charged $650 each day until the job is finished, the commissioners said.
Deadline
The 55 days will be up Feb. 24 but Miller said Paliotta's engineering firm says it won't be done in that time frame.
He said the company indicated that, even if its final plan is approved, the company won't be ready to begin the corrective action until the end of February. June 2 is the projected completion date, he said.
The final corrective plan is due in the county's hands Wednesday, Miller said.
There has been no indication from the contractor so far that the 55-day time frame will be challenged, he said.