Cape courthouse needs federal money for artwork

The General Services Administration spent money budgeted for original artwork to help pay cost overruns in constructing the federal courthouse in Cape Girardeau, agency officials said.

The agency plans to seek $255,000 to pay for original artwork such as sculptures and paintings to adorn the new courthouse at 555 Independence St., GSA officials said Tuesday.

The $255,000 is part of $2.2 million in added funding the GSA says it needs to complete the courthouse and make major repairs, GSA regional administrator Brad Scott said. The repairs include replacing the roof.

Roofing contractor J. Thomas & Co. Inc. of St. Charles, Mo., installed the roof, which the GSA said wasn't up to federal standards.

A woman who answered the telephone at the company's office Tuesday said she couldn't comment on the problem. She said no one was available to discuss the courthouse.

According to an Internet search, the company has been in operation since 1996. It does both residential and commercial construction, according to contractors.com.

GSA officials said the agency is required to spend money on artwork in connection with construction of new courthouses.

But at the time, the GSA felt it would be best to tap into the budget for artwork in order to pay some of the construction cost overruns, said agency spokesman Charlie Cook.

The GSA said Friday the new courthouse won't open until next spring because of design, construction and "contract execution" deficiencies.

Besides money for artwork, the requested $2.2 million in added funding includes more than $1.5 million to deal with courthouse defects and make repairs, and $400,000 in added design, planning and construction management costs, Scott said.

Some work, such as replacing the roof, can wait until after the courthouse opens, he said. But insufficient lighting and problems with the electronic door locks and an inefficient cooling system in a computer room must be addressed before the courthouse opens, GSA officials said.

Cook said cost overruns and construction delays centered on installation of metal piers to anchor the building in bedrock and prevent massive damage in the event of a major earthquake.

Original construction plans called for installing 150 piers. But when construction began it was discovered that 20 more piers were needed because of the geology of the site, Cook said.

The exterior contractor, PCL of Denver, had scheduled 21 days to install piers for the foundation. As it turned out, installing all the piers took five months, Cook said.

The increased cost of steel associated with the piers and the building frame added to the cost of the project, he said.

The entire project is expected to cost about $62 million, counting the latest request for $2.2 million.

The GSA needs approval from two congressional committees before it can use unspent money from other federal building projects, officials said.

mbliss@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 123