CHARLOTTE, N.C. — People driving down Independence Boulevard will find lots of construction equipment, but few workers.
The North Carolina Department of Transportation project to widen the road has been on hold since DeVere Construction, the lead contractor, walked off the job last week.
Eyewitness News has now learned the company that has a surety bond guaranteeing DeVere’s work is now taking responsibility for the project.
Read our past coverage:
"Liberty Mutual, the bonding company, has already notified NCDOT that DeVere will not be back," said North Carolina Rep. Bill Brawley, R-Mecklenburg. "They will take over the jobs and have full responsibility for completing them."
NCDOT requires contractors to be bonded. That bonding agent is responsible for assuring completion of the project if a company like DeVere fails to perform.
In this case, Liberty Mutual will make sure subcontractors are paid and make sure the construction site on Independence between Sharon Amity and Conference Drive is kept safe.
It will also be required to hire a new lead contractor to make sure the project is finished on budget. It’s a way of protecting the DOT and taxpayers and is proving its worth in this situation.
“Whenever we can we try to transfer the risk to someone else,” Brawley said.
On the site Thursday, Eyewitness News saw work crews pouring concrete on a bridge at Sharon Amity Road.
The NCDOT says those crews have been told by Liberty Mutual to continue their work even as other work has stopped. Sources also say another contractor will soon be hired to make sure traffic barriers and erosion prevention along Independence remain in compliance with state regulations.
Three days after Channel 9 started asking, DeVere offered an explanation for its decision to walk off the job saying it has “demobilized its forces from a number of NCDOT projects pending resolution of sizeable claims.”
Full statement from DeVere:
<em>DeVere Construction Co., Inc., a Michigan based general contractor with a regional office in Raleigh, NC, has demobilized its forces from a number of NCDOT Projects pending resolution of sizeable claims and the release of substantial contract balances currently withheld by the North Carolina Department of Transportation.</em>
<em>"We are a second generation, family owned construction company and are proud of our work. The decision to demobilize was not easy one, but there is a limit to our patience. The NCDOT claim process is broken. I fully anticipate DeVere Construction will prevail and recover the monies properly due and owing by the NCDOT. Beyond that, I do not believe it would be appropriate to comment at this time." said Richard Crittenden, president of DeVere Construction Co., Inc. The company is actively completing other Projects and appreciates the cooperation of the other parties involved that work.</em>
NCDOT responded saying “there can be financial consequences if the company fails to meet its contracted obligations.”
Full statement from NCDOT:
<em>"Our focus is on completion of all projects in a timely, satisfactory manner and reducing the impact to the traveling public. We hold a contractor like DeVere Construction responsible for helping us achieve that goal by doing the required work under the schedule specified in its contract with the department. And there can be financial consequences if the company fails to meet its contracted obligations.</em>
<em>"In 2014, DeVere Construction was barred from bidding on any future NCDOT projects in an effort to allow the company to focus on and complete its current projects."</em>
At a separate construction site on Central Avenue, a Devere employee refused to talk with an Eyewitness News crew, saying, “I have nothing to say. I don’t know anything about it.”
The NCDOT said it will work with Liberty Mutual to find a new lead contractor, but admits it’s likely to be March before the remaining work on Independence resumes. The project is scheduled to be completed in October, but DeVere will no longer be part of the process.
“I don’t know why,” Brawley said. “I just know they’re gone and they’re not coming back. We will have a good contractor to replace them."
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