City Administrator Eric Olson has changed his position on the public safety concerns at city’s Government Street Stormwater Project, two blocks from City Hall.
Two weeks ago, Olson told Councilwoman Sherri Myers that the filtration system and its diesel pumps would be removed by the end of day and a construction fence would be placed around the pond. Assistant Administrator Keith Wilkins and City Engineer Derek Owens relayed the same message to County Commissioner Lumon May.
According to Councilwoman Myers, Olson told her this morning that the construction site is the responsibility of the contractor, Utility Service, and the city can’t do anything about the issues that the Emerald Coastkeepers and residents have voiced. The city administrator said the contractor is not required to put up a construction fence.
I wonder if Utility Service knows Olson has thrown them under the bus.
Stay tuned. Mayor Ashton Hayward and his team have a gift for making the simplest problem complex.
I assume a contract with any firm doing business with the city states that it will agree to perform the work within the confines of all local, state and federal safety guidelines and building codes. So, it begs the question: Has anyone filed a formal complaint with any of these agencies or are we just having an academic conversation on this matter? Otherwise, this all seems like an incredible waste of time for anyone who is reading about this. It seems like the people most affected by it would already have filed written complaints with City and County inspections, State DEP and OSHA and have some response at this point. If not, do they really care?
The safety of those who live in that area is of upmost importance. Why are those who are responsible waiting for something tragic to happen, and why do I get the impression that the well-being of those citizens are not valued? Mayor, you and your administration have again been found wanting. When will the City of Pensacola get some relief from your ineptness and keystone cops administration?
seems as though Olson and company have learned about contractor’s authority over “means and methods” in specifying the remedies [“A central principle of construction contracts is that, where a contractor commits to construct in accordance with plans and specifications provided by the owner in exchange for payment of a firm, fixed price, the contractor controls its means and methods, unless the plans and specifications clearly dictate a particular means or method. (For example, the structural engineer may specify a particular jacking procedure for raising a space frame.) When the owner, after contract execution, requires the contractor to perform in a different manner than the contractor planned, even though the contractor’s original plan also meets the contract requirements, the contractor is due compensation for the increased costs it suffers as a result of this direction.] However, this authority doesn’t supersede safety or other laws. So the question is…. which are true law/safety violations (enforceable by the city/other authorities) and which are just doing right by the neighborhood…items that should have been addressed in the contract originally to avoid additional costs. Other City contracts have included such specifications such as limiting road construction near a school during pickup/drop off times.
The city is Utility Services’ client. The project manual should have laid out the contractor’s responsibility to provide a safe working environment for the construction workers and the public at large. The city’s failure to make such requirements is yet another example of the incompetence and poor management skills of Eric Olsen under the weak direction of our mayor. The city faces tremendous liability in this case of an unfenced site with a large pond. As a resident of the city and taxpayer, I demand that Mr. Olsen get this poor policy decision reversed. This is not a decision for Utility Services to have to make.