SHARON Contractors arrive at viaduct to dismantle faulty structure

Just who will pay for the extra work is an issue probably headed for court.
By HAROLD GWIN
VINDICATOR SHARON BUREAU
SHARON, Pa. -- Employees from Carmen Paliotta Contracting Inc. showed up at the Oakland Avenue Viaduct on Monday to begin dismantling the 300-foot span.
Mark Miller, Mercer County's bridge engineer, said the workers were only doing some cleanup work around the span's deck level, but an attorney for Paliotta said the company is moving ahead with its plans to dismantle the structure.
Paliotta, based in Library, Pa., will find out what caused a misalignment problem that caused work on the bridge to stop two years ago, correct it, and then reassemble the structure, said Atty. D. Matthew Jameson III of Pittsburgh.
Paliotta is the contractor on the $3.6 million bridge replacement project and already has been paid $2.9 million for work completed.
The viaduct is a county-owned bridge but the county has no money in the project. The federal government is putting up 80 percent and the state is covering the rest.
Work halted
The job was to be completed in November 2001, but the county ordered work halted when it learned of a misalignment problem that gave the bridge a slight "S" shape.
The problem was traced to the eight concrete pedestals at the base of the 60-foot-high structure, which spans the Shenango Valley Freeway.
County officials said the tops of the pedestals aren't level, resulting in the misalignment.
Paliotta said that's the county's fault, alleging that a county inspector directed workers to use stone instead of concrete as a base beneath the pedestals. The pedestals later settled, causing the alignment problem.
The county has denied the accusation, saying the misalignment is the contractor's fault.
Efforts to resolve the dispute and come up with a corrective action plan have been unsuccessful.
Paliotta announced to the county in a Nov. 7 letter that it would tear the bridge down, assess the problem, replace the pedestals as needed, and then reconstruct the bridge.
Work was to begin Monday, unless the county objected, the letter said.
The letter made it clear that the issue of who will pay for the extra work will likely be decided in court.
County's response
The county sent a letter to Paliotta, approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, which is overseeing the project, late Friday. Jameson said late Monday that he and his client are reviewing it and will respond.
Olivia Lazor, Mercer County commissioner, said the county's letter also contains an advisory that any additional expense incurred in the effort will be the contractor's responsibility.
Dismantling and rebuilding the bridge will require closing the Shenango Valley Freeway to traffic just as it did in the original demolition and construction, he said.
Miller said the county letter basically told Paliotta that the company must get a dismantling and reconstruction plan approved by the state before it proceeds.
gwin@vindy.com