OT-Oops! $60 million Stadium lasts 2 years!

[freescooter]

http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slat..._million_stadium_due_to_structural_flaws.html

 

[CTMike]

460 million or 60 million? Either way... Yah... Oops!

 

[LIUCHusky]

http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slat..._million_stadium_due_to_structural_flaws.html

60 Million. That's bad enough!

 

[freescooter]

Sixty. I forgot the Cap for the "$" Imagine spending that much for a high school stadium. having it declared unsafe after 2 years is just beyond belief!

 

[Nostical]

I've been there and also to Southlake's which is comparable. My buddy used to live across the street in Southlake from Paul Pasqualoni! I also attended a game in Austin between Austin Westlake (Drew Brees) and San Antonio Judson--on a Friday night. It was stunning for a New Englander. Real tickets and booths, assigned seats, packed house, lots of concessions and Westlake's band and flag corps was bigger than many colleges. We all know high school football is a big deal in Texas but until you see it you can't believe it.

 

[FAIRTIDES]

I've been there and also to Southlake's which is comparable. My buddy used to live across the street in Southlake from Paul Pasqualoni! I also attended a game in Austin between Austin Westlake (Drew Brees) and San Antonio Judson--on a Friday night. It was stunning for a New Englander. Real tickets and booths, assigned seats, packed house, lots of concessions and Westlake's band and flag corps was bigger than many colleges. We all know high school football is a big deal in Texas but until you see it you can't believe it.

And six-figure coaches with no other responsibilities; teaching or otherwise.

 

[freescooter]

Looks like maybe they should have spent a little more on concrete testing and a little less on Jumbotrons, but that's just my view.

 

[Vowelguy]

I'm sure the contractor/designer will get away scott free, leaving the tax payers to eat the entire cost of this debacle.

 

[Vowelguy]

Looks like maybe they should have spent a little more on concrete testing and a little less on Jumbotrons, but that's just my view.

The town shouldn't have to pay for concrete testing. If you ask someone to build a concrete system, then that company should be responsible for knowing what the heck they're doing and testing their work isn't going to fall apart in 2 years.
Infrastructure construction is a great racket.

 

[freescooter]

We always require testing and review it before making payment. We have on occasion rejected concrete, the contractor isn't too happy, nor is the concrete provider as you can imagine, but it happens.

 

[SubbaBub]

You get what you pay for. I am sure this local thought because they had a guy on the building committee with home building experience they had it covered. Towns get into this kind of trouble all the time. The reason, not understanding what it takes to deliver project of this size. It goes like this...

1. We want a stadium, how much?
2. Well, that varies greatly on a number of factors but generally run $x per seat, so call it $60M.
3. Town bonds $60M
4. Town sets up an advisory committee of football parents, the coach, the AD, and an assortment of boosters and politicians. Basically, anyone who gets worked up over ceremonial groundbreaking ceremonies.
5. Said committee, starts asking for the moon, goes through several iterations and settles for asking for the moon and the stars.
6. Hired professional, eager to please, delivers exactly what they ask for and surprise, it's way over budget.
7. Committee grumbles about incompetent professional, demands a $60M stadium but can't agree to remove any of the shiny baubles they've spent the last several months bragging about.
8. Professional, still eager to please, more eager to stifle the moaning bastards, guts anything and everything that doesn't contribute to the wow factor. Budget back to $60M
9. Stadium is put out to bid and surprise, it comes in a tad over $60M.
10. Committee dips into construction management budget to cover overages and contingencies, hires local retiree to oversee the construction committee.
11. Committee assumes the contractor will do exactly what they bid and since they're professionals, everything will be jake.
12. As the budget is stretching, why are we spending so much on testing, I can tell good concrete from bad.
13. Yeah, we have a problem here.

 

[Jax Husky]

The town shouldn't have to pay for concrete testing. If you ask someone to build a concrete system, then that company should be responsible for knowing what the heck they're doing and testing their work isn't going to fall apart in 2 years.
Infrastructure construction is a great racket.

Uhhh, if you read, the issue is the design, not the implementation. Go on and bitch about contractors if you must, but this one's on the architect.

 

[uc1974]

I never realized it took much design talent to build a HS football stadium, even in Texas. Silly me.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

Should've had the foundations in place in the old stadium to make it easily expandable