Center construction team falls 12 more days behind in November

Construction of the Convention Center has fallen further behind schedule, Construction Manager Tim Reynolds told a Convention Center Authority committee, Thursday evening.

Progress on the "critical path" is now a full 60 days behind schedule after site work fell behind another 12 days in November, according to Reynolds.

Reynolds attributes the "slippage" to poor weather, the Thanksgiving holiday, and the start of hunting season.

But he still gave assurances that the hotel & convention center as a whole will be ready to open by April 14, even if it means that the construction team has to add a second shift.

The project is now 70% complete with $84,341,787.74 in construction invoices as of Nov. 30.

Recent progress at the site includes streetscape work on curbs, including planting of trees, filling in of the c0ncrete gate on Christian St., installation of stair rails in the hotel tower, installation of washing machines, beer coolers, pathways for television cables, wireless devices, and piping for icemakers in the hotel tower, and Watt & Shand window installation, Reynolds reported.

Gail Tomlinson, Director of the Stevens & Smith Historic Site, announced that a large banner will appear on the side of those buildings before the end of the year to advertise to the public that the historic attraction will be "coming soon."

Asked whether he has made any progress in the inquiry as to what happened and who is responsible for a previously-reported misaligned freight elevator shaft in the convention center, which cost the Authority $86,000, Executive Director Kevin Molloy responded that he does not want to "kick the dog while it's still working" but remains determined to get answers in a few months.