Preliminary repair work is underway at Maryland' s Silver Spring Transit Center, but officials still can't say when it will actually open.
The construction and design teams have agreed for now to pay for the necessary repairs to fix the structural problems at the Silver Spring Transit Center that were detailed in a scathing county report.
David Dise, director of general services for Montgomery County, says some repair work is already underway but that the major remediation work won't take place until late summer.
"Foulger Pratt was directed on Friday to begin the replacement of the faulty pour strips on the mid-level of the transit center," Dise says. "Parsons Brinkerhoff, the engineer of record, is beginning the design of the other remediation work that has to be done, the columns, the beams, and the topping slabs on the two levels."
That's just the beginning. Those repairs will take months to complete, so Dise can't say when the facility, already two years behind schedule, will open.
"Much of that will depend upon the final remediation plan being developed by Parsons Brinkerhoff and the subsequent schedule developed by Foulger Pratt after they receive the design," Dise says.
So the county, as of now, will not have to pump any more money into finishing the facility.
"The contractors that have performed the work that is in error must bear the cost of its repair," Dise says.
So it appears the county and the contractors have reached a resolution that will avoid costly, time consuming litigation, at least for the time being. The contractors may fight the county in court after the work is done to recover their expenses.