Photo by Matt de Simone
By Matt de Simone
County Capital Projects Manager Rich Evans met with the Board of Supervisors at its March meeting to give the most recent update about the Botetourt County Courthouse construction project now underway.
Skanska, one of the world’s largest project development and construction companies, recently visited the construction sire to observe and record the work occurring in Fincastle. Evans shared those preparations around the retaining wall started with the removal of the existing chain link fence. Layout for the retaining wall and the footings have been completed in order for rock-drilling to begin. Dirt work has also begun around the retaining wall area.
Demolition preparations also continued. Inside the building, J&K Environmental completed its asbestos removal from the old courthouse and the building has since been cleared. Varney started disconnecting electrical breakers while J&K helped remove light bulbs and light fixtures.
Additionally, a new sign noting the ongoing courthouse construction project was installed on the corner of Main Street and Route 220 (Botetourt Road). Last week, the bell was removed from the cupola in front of the courthouse as well as the cannons. They are currently being stored and preserved.
Skanska representatives are currently awaiting training on the project site to track submittals for verification in preparing regular reports. A draft schedule of values was recently submitted which is a line-for-line task list by the different subcontractors that places the value on the work being done. Evans noted that there will be general items that will be expanded as the subcontractor breakdowns are received.
The complete schedule of values was submitted at the end of March. The overall, detailed schedule of the project is expected to be released soon. Evans shared in a recent interview that “there are still some moving parts that haven’t been nailed down. Until those are more firm, I would hate to put out a schedule and it be misleading.”
