Contractors say poor weather to blame for LaSalle Avenue delay

LaSalle Avenue has been a long time coming, but motorists anxious for a shortcut from northeast Jackson to Cape Girardeau will have to wait just a little bit longer, city engineer Kelly Green said Monday.

LaSalle Avenue is the Cape Girardeau road connecting the new Interstate 55 interchange at mile marker 103 with Route W north of Cape Girardeau. It connects with East Main Street in Jackson, a road that was opened when the new interchange opened in January 2008.

Weather and design changes on the 2-mile-long, $3.4 million road have pushed the completion date past the expected May opening. Now, barring another lengthy period of bad weather, the road should be open by sometime in September, Green said.

"The problem was every week it seems like we had rain," Green said. "Typically we see a wet spring and by May or early June we start drying up. We haven't had that this year."

Danny Dumey, president of the chief contractor Dumey Construction, said the road was also delayed as the city made changes to the design that included wider traffic lanes, an asphalt rather than gravel shoulder and more driveway openings to accommodate adjacent landowners. The changes, made because the original bid came in under budget, should be welcome to motorists who will use the road, he said.

Gaines Construction crews pave LaSalle Avenue eastward toward Route W on Monday in Cape Girardeau. (Kit Doyle)

"I am sure the public will be more than happy with the upgrades that have been done," Dumey said. "It will be more than worth the wait."

The rolling terrain along the path of the road created some issues, both Dumey and Green said. Deep cuts and fills to create a gentler grade both posed challenges. On the deep cuts, Dumey said the construction crews encountered small springs that had to be taken into account. On the fills, regular rains kept the dirt too wet for big equipment.

Since Oct. 1, the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport has recorded measurable rain on 102 of 272 days. Only recently has the weather been hot enough to dry the dirt sufficiently to allow the base of rock to be put in place.

If the city disagreed with Dumey over the extent of weather and other unavoidable delays, it could have sought damages at the rate of $1,000 a day from Dumey, Green said. The city is satisfied that the road is not late because of contractor problems and does not intend to seek damages at this point, she said.

Most of the concrete on the 1.5 mile section that will connect with Route W on the east end of LaSalle Avenue was put down last week. Crews were pouring the final section Monday and then will work on the half-mile, four-lane section near Interstate 55, Dumey said.

Tom Miles sets a string line for upcoming trimmer and paver work Monday afternoon on the last section of LaSalle Avenue needing to be paved just east of Interstate 55.

"Eight weeks from now we expect to have everything 100 percent complete, barring rain," he said.

If city residents are comparing the progress on Independence Street with the progress on LaSalle, Green said that there are important differences. For example, she said, it is impossible to place the gravel base on wet or poorly compacted dirt during new construction. Because Independence Street was being rebuilt, it was easier to keep the underlying surface ready for paving.

When the I-55 interchange was being planned and built, the city had hoped to be able to announce a major business ready to locate there. But as the national economy began to slump in 2007, the designated developer, THF Realty, put plans on hold because it was difficult to lure a major retailer to an unproven location.

And while there may be no development along the road now, LaSalle's completion date is one of the most common questions Green is asked, she said.

"We have told the contractor that although this road may not go to any one destination, a lot of people are really looking forward to this road," Green said. "For people going from Jackson to the downtown side of Cape Girardeau, now they can go over to Perryville Road. And the contractors have heard it too, and not just from us. They know people are looking forward to having this road available for them."

rkeller@semissourian.com

388-3642

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