The contractor installing stormwater pipes at 53rd Avenue North is weeks behind schedule and will likely miss its May deadline, Myrtle Beach officials said recently in a report on Myrtle Beach online.
"It's three months into the project, and we don't have a single pipe in place," Kruea said.
Last week, the city issued a legal ultimatum, known as a Notice to Cure, which told Sunland Construction Inc. to get the project back on schedule, Kruea said.
Sunland Construction officials could not be reached for comment.
The project's contractor had until Monday to respond to city complaints that the project was significantly behind schedule. It was not immediately clear whether the Public Works Department got a response, but Kruea said it would be difficult for the contractor to catch up at this point.
Kruea said the city has a few options to move ahead, including using the performance bond to force the contractor to complete the project, hiring the second-lowest bidder or rebidding the project entirely.
The project will address flooding in the 900-acre Deep Head Swash Drainage Basin, Kruea said. The city already has some efforts in place to ward off flooding, but this $4.2 million project would "improve this function dramatically," he said.
Heavy rains can lead to flooding or drain onto beaches, producing high bacteria levels that can cause infections in people who ingest the water, S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control spokeswoman Jan Easterling said.
Pipes currently drain stormwater runoff onto the beach in some areas, including 53rd Avenue North.
The outfalls being installed collect water from swashes throughout the city, diverting it under the beach and 1,000 ft into the ocean.
Stormwater controls already in place will continue to function to try to ward off flooding and pollution problems this summer, Kruea said.
"We would have liked to have this done by summer, but it doesn't look like that's going to happen," Kruea said.
The city has completed one deepwater ocean outfall at 25th Avenue South and began work on another in February at 14th Avenue North. Different contractors are handling these projects.
The city has not yet paid Sunland for the work at 53rd Avenue North, and the city has never worked with this contractor before, Kruea said. The technology being used for this process is new, and the Sunland officials estimated a May completion date when they signed the contract, Kruea said.
Source: The Sun News
