BEATRICE – Gage County officials have given a construction company another month to complete work on a series of six culvert projects the county bid about a year ago.


The Board of Supervisors voted 4-3 to have Vogtscapes finish the work by June 1st. The original completion date was last November, but a six-month extension through the winter was granted to May 1st. Gage County Board Chairman Erich Tiemann said one project was taken out of the contract because of road work in the area.


"Six months was added for absolutely zero reason. That's what it comes down to...there's absolutely no reason other than Vogtscapes got behind on their work. That's something else to lay on the table...just being very flat and playing devil's advocate here....we had no weather delays, we had nothing else."


A one-month delay, company officials say, was caused by a communications company failing to relocate a line in a timely manner, losing 25 work days. Owner Tim Vogt spoke before the board.


"We've been penalized for having to move in and out, already. Taking this job away on Clatonia 1262, it is....that's a 41-hundred dollar bond, we're not allowed to get our money back. The bonding company tells us they've already had exposure...they won't refund that money. To me, that's 13 days liquidated damages, there. We're going in order, as we're supposed to. We can get them done sometime in the middle of May, if we can work on all five projects at the same time."


The June 1st date, if not met, would enable liquidated damages to be paid on the contract. Board member Gary Lytle was one of the three supervisors wanting to stick with the May 1st date.


"I don't want to move to June one and it ends up being June 15 or July one, or whatever. I'd rather we leave it at May one... you guys execute...you get it done by June one, then we work something out on the liquidated damages as far as.....maybe we're agreeable that is long as it was done by June one, we're okay."


Also voting against the additional extension were board members Emily Haxby and Rick Clabaugh.


On other road matters, officials said work on the Rockford Road south of U.S. Highway 136 began on Monday.
The Board of Supervisors also accepted the qualifications of Mainelli and Associates to provide engineering assistance on a grant application for two paving projects….the Odell Road or Southwest 61st…..and on South 25th Road in the Pickrell area.