Snoqualmie, builder reach settlement on city hall costs

The city of Snoqualmie has settled construction costs for its new City Hall with the builder.

Following a closed session late last Monday, March 23, the Snoqualmie City Council approved a negotiated close-out of the construction contract with Bird Construction Co. of Issaquah.

City Hall opened Dec. 14 after eighteen months of construction, more than six months behind schedule.

The original, accepted bid for the building was $4.8 million, but Bird demanded nearly $1.1 million in additional costs.

In the final months of construction, the city hit Bird with $2,000 in damages daily for the delay, stopping at the end of October.

As of last week, Bird and the City agreed to a final cost of $4,914,000 adding about $28,000 to the original bid.

Delay damages and unfinished work at the building gave the edge in negotiations to the city.

"It came out extremely favorable — as favorable as it possibly could have," City Attorney Pat Anderson said.

The city remains in dispute with the City Hall architect, Gensler of Seattle, and the construction manager, Harris and Associates of Bellevue. Disputed amounts are less than Bird's claims, but the city would not provide that amounts due to the continued potential for litigation.

Negotiations may take several weeks to conclude, Mayor Matt Larson told the Record.

Bird Construction has agreed to join the city in contesting Gensler's claims, the mayor stated.

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