The companies that could not complete an expansion of the existing terminal at Southwest Florida International Airport will get a second chance.
The Lee County Port Authority board voted Monday to extend the contracts of Atkins North America and Manhattan Construction.
Commissioners approved a new contract for Atkins, even thought it has admitted its first designs to expand the terminal were flawed.
Commissioner Mike Greenwell said the original flawed plans was a major mistake, and wondered why it took so long to figure that out and make corrections.
Atkins has said that the first plans did not fully account for how much pressure the expansion would put on the existing terminal building. Manhattan Construction objected to the designs in 2023.
Later an outside company found that the work, which came to a stop more than a year ago, could have allowed the roof of the terminal to blow off in a category 5 hurricane.
Darin Larson, a representative for Atkins, promised the commissioners that Atkins would get it right this time around. He said the new plans were substantially complete, and would account for reinforcing the concrete in parts of the existing terminal.
Atkins will get just over $9.6 million in the contract extension.
Manhattan Construction said it likes the new plans, and will get about $307 million. Manhattan said it would start by demolishing some of the earlier work, which could be flawed. Then it will use the new designs, and stronger reinforcements for concrete, to connect the concourses and expand security checkpoint areas at the terminal.
Commissioners did praise Manhattan for spotting the original problems, and calling a halt to more work. They voted to extend Manhattan's contract until March 31, 2029.
Steve Hennigan, the port authority executive director, told commissioners that it will take Manhattan a number of months to tear out some of the earlier work, and then rebuild to higher standards of strength.
The board also extended the contract for EG Solutions, which provides some engineering and inspection services during the work. That contract extension is for about $12.5 million, and a time frame of roughly 44 months.
In addition the port authority has hired Parsons Corporation for about $3 million. Parsons is known for closely monitoring construction projects.
Commissioners were told if they dumped Atkins and Manhattan, it could take up to seven years and $500 million to hire new companies to pick up and complete the job.
At RSW on Monday, Sheila Christofore of Collier County was waiting for relatives to arrive.
"It is unfortunate that they did not get the plans right the first time," she said, voicing relief that nobody got hurt because of faulty construction. "It is an inconvenience. But I would rather have them find the problem early on, and then correct it, even if it takes more time and money. It is a necessary evil."
The money for expanding RSW does not come from local property taxes. It comes from government grants and fees that the airlines pay to use airports.
Lee County Commissioner David Mulicka has spent months studying the problems with phase one expansion. He has criticized both Atkins and Manhattan, as well as what he called lack of oversight by some LCPA employees in the past.
He said he has a message for people using RSW, as the contractors work again to expand the existing terminal.
"I would say: Pardon our dust," Mulicka said. "We are constantly changing and improving to serve you better. And bear with us. It'll be worth it when we get this done. But we are honestly doing all this to deliver better service to our clients. It's vitally important to us to deliver the very best product. We want to welcome you to Southwest Florida."
WGCU is your trusted source for news and information in Southwest Florida. Mike Walcher is a reporter with WGCU News and also teaches journalism at FGCU.