Less than nine months after the rebuilding of Sixth Avenue was completed downtown, orange and white barricades were back in place Tuesday as the contractor hired by the city is back to correct problems.
“There were things that were not done to the correct (specifications), a number of things that weren’t up to our standards or weren’t done as bid,” Ald. Mitchell Pedersen, chairman of the City Council’s Public Works Committee, said. “There are a few issues with the sidewalk and some areas of the road that were not in compliance.”
“This is not costing anything additional to the taxpayer. We have not closed out the contract for the downtown work that was done last summer,” Pedersen added, meaning the city has not made final payment to A.W. Oakes & Son Inc., of Racine.
Business owners affected by the lengthy project, which included unexplained delays, publicly questioned why it was taking so long and several pointed out the problems with workmanship that are now being addressed.
In addition, businesses, most of which rely on patrons being able to park their cars on the street near their shops and restaurants, criticized the loss of spaces under a redesign done by the city that reduced available parking.
