By Carol Vaughn —
Delays continue to plague the library construction project underway in Parksley.
The current completion date, according to the contract, is Jan. 28, 2022.
The project as a whole is around 75% complete, according to Accomack County Administrator Mike Mason.
The Accomack County Board of Supervisors went into executive session at Wednesday’s meeting to discuss legal matters related to construction contracts for the Eastern Shore Regional Library and Heritage Center.
The roof has been one area of concern.
It was 67% complete, including stored materials, as of Nov. 8. Ground was broken on the library in October 2019.
A change order to the contract was approved in June, changing the roof design on the portion of the building that formerly was a grocery store.
Supply chain issues caused significant delays in receiving materials needed to begin that work and, as result, the subcontractor responsible for the roof moved on to other projects, according to Mason.
He said work on the roof resumed Nov. 8.
The contract total to date is $4.78 million and the project is still within the current approved budget.
The county received information from two subcontractors, Peninsula Roofing Inc. and Virginia Stucco Company, saying they had not been paid by the general contractor, R.H. Contracting Inc., for work they had done and materials they provided for the library project.
The amounts owed and reported past due by the subcontractors were $22,800 to Peninsula Roofing and $58,270 to Virginia Stucco, according to information provided by Accomack County in response to a request for information made by the Post.
Under the contract, the general contractor is to pay each subcontractor no later than seven days after receiving payment from the county.
The county’s review determined R.H. Contracting had been properly paid by the county for the work and/or materials provided by the two subcontractors.
The county on Oct. 19 notified R.H. Contracting it had received notice some subcontractors had not been paid and requested the general contractor to provide evidence it had paid all its subcontractors and suppliers the amounts the county had paid R.H. Contracting for the completed work.
The general contractor did not provide the evidence the county asked for within the allotted time. As result, the county notified R.H. Contracting on Nov. 5 Accomack County intended to terminate the contract with the company for cause if the company did not cure its default within seven days of receiving the notice.
Peninsula Roofing notified the county on Nov., 9 that the general contractor had paid the amount owed.
R.H. Contracting on Nov. 10 notified the county by letter that the company intended to pay Virginia Stucco on Friday, Nov. 12.
The county as of Wednesday was waiting for confirmation from Virginia Stucco that the payment was made, according to Mason.
