While weather and high water have slowed the $5.7 million repair job to keep the city's 21st Century Waterfront from sinking, city officials say two major upcoming events will not be scuttled.
Chattanooga Public Works Administrator Lee Norris said Friday that Riverbend and the Ironman 70.3 Chattanooga triathlon, both of which will use the waterfront, will not be delayed.
"Riverbend will be good to go as long as they've cleared the second mooring post [upstream of the Coca-Cola Stage]. I think we are good there," Norris said. "And for [the Ironman], we can just change the launch point on that if we need to."
In December, Norris said work would be completed by May 1. But that date has been moved to May 14, four days before prep work for Riverbend begins and three days before the massive endurance race.
Even if all the work isn't completed, Norris said, workers will clear the site to allow space for residents and merchant booths at the events. To boot, Smith Contractors, the company that was awarded the construction job, will pay $3,000 for each day past the May 14 deadline.
The Chattanooga City Council on Tuesday increased a design contract for the waterfront repairs by more than $36,000. That means the city's contract with HDR Engineering for design and engineering services on the repair has reached $881,715.
According to the revised contract, HDR will use the money for "underwater inspection of construction elements" during and after the rebuild.
Event organizers say they are comfortable with the state of repairs.
Randy Buckles, operations director for Friends of the Festival, which organizes Riverbend, said whatever happens will matter little to the festival preparations.
"We've been in contact with the city engineers, and everything at this point it looks like they are moving right along. We expect a very minimal impact," Buckles said.
Chip Baker, the group's executive director, said he hopes the repairs will be done, but the show will go on regardless.
"In 2004, we lived through a construction project, and we'll do it again," he said.
Organizers for the Ironman triathlon did not immediately return emails Friday. The group was prepping for today's Accenture Ironman 70.3 triathlon in California.
SINKING SHORELINE
Norris said HDR has already inspected and approved the repair work done so far on the landing.
That's good news, since the repairs are needed to keep the landing above water.
For the last decade, water had seeped through a porous earthen wall beneath Ross's Landing and into the foundation soil. That washed parts of the foundation away and caused concrete supports to crack. Sections of Ross's Landing have sunk as much as 6 inches since then.
But at the same time, Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce officials project the 21st Century Waterfront and the nearby Tennessee Aquarium have brought more than $1 billion to downtown.
Foundation repairs were first expected to cost $9 million, but plans for expanded docks, a marina building, restrooms and meeting space were cut from the project.
Repairs on the waterfront started almost as soon as it was completed in 2005, along with lengthy court battles over construction quality and oversight.
Shortly after the project's opening, which started the so-called Chattanooga renaissance and was the legacy of former mayor and now U.S. Sen. Bob Corker, faulty construction and bad wiring put a black mark on the city's flagship project.
Under Mayor Ron Littlefield's administration, there were $3 million in repairs because contractors had installed wiring that was not meant for underwater use.
Other issues with The Passage, a water feature near the Tennessee Aquarium, spurred a lawsuit between the city and project partner River City Co.
The city then said it was not made aware of poor construction practices until 2007, clearing Corker's name. But court records showed the city knew about bad wiring and unstable concrete a year before the project opened. At that time, Corker adamantly denied any knowledge of the building problems.
Contact Louie Brogdon at lbrog don@timesfree press.com, @glbrogdoniv on Twitter or at 423-757-6481.