Greeley sues Hydro Construction over leaks at renovated water treatment plant
By Trenton Sperry
The City of Greeley filed an eight-page lawsuit against Hydro Construction Co. Inc. of Fort Collins, alleging water leaks at the city’s Bellvue Water Treatment Plant are the result of the company’s mistakes during a vast renovation.
Built in 1907 at the mouth of the Poudre Canyon in Bellvue – 36 miles from town – the facility is responsible for processing the vast majority of Greeley’s water. In 2016, Greeley contracted with HDR Inc. of Omaha, Neb., to design the first major improvements to the facility since 1947. In 2017, Greeley contracted with Hydro Construction to perform the work, which began in 2018.
The case has been assigned to Weld District Judge Shannon Lyons, and Greeley is demanding a jury trial over the allegations. It claims Hydro Construction – which was acquired by Greeley-based general contracting firm Hensel Phelps in August – essentially botched the $25 million renovation of the plant.
The suit states that the city gave Hydro Construction a 200-plus-page list of items to be repaired or completed in June 2020 before the city would agree the renovation was finished.
“These errors and defects included actions and inactions that led to cracking and water leaking in the (Treatment Building 1) structure,” the lawsuit reads. “These errors and defects also included actions and inactions unrelated to cracking and water leaking.”
The city states it raised the issue of subpar concrete with Hydro Construction during the renovation, as well as locations where poured concrete showed signs of holes that would result in water leaks. Hydro Construction agreed that the cracking and water leaking were the result of “temperature-related contraction and expansion of the concrete,” the lawsuit alleges.
When city inspectors came back later, they found what appeared to be corrected concrete pours, according to the lawsuit. But Hydro Construction had simply applied a cosmetic coat to the original pour, “which masked but did not repair the deficiencies in the concrete,” the lawsuit alleges. Hydro Construction attempted several fixes for the leaking cracks, according to the lawsuit, but the plant continued to experience cracking and water leaks in “numerous” spots.
This past year, Greeley brought in CDM Smith, an engineering and construction company based in Boston, to find the cause of the cracks and leaks. According to the lawsuit, CDM Smith found the wrong crack-sealing products were used by Hydro Construction, their concrete mixing procedures didn’t follow industry best practices, and the concrete used didn’t have “required shrinkage reducer admixture.”
CDM Smith advised the city the cracks would need to be sealed quickly and in cold weather, according to the lawsuit, and that not acting quickly “could make the repairs more expensive, perhaps in the range of millions or tens of millions of dollars.”
Greeley hired Restruction Corp. of Sedalia, Colo., to repair the concrete, which was completed in April. But the city notes in its lawsuit that whether those repairs will be effective won’t be known for several years, as the concrete will have to go through several contraction and expansion cycles from temperature changes.
Additionally, “the repairs were not able to completely address all defects in the (structure) in which deteriorating concrete and rebar remain problems that affect the lifespan and functionality of the (structure),” according to the lawsuit.
In its own report, Restruction claimed Hydro Construction attempted to fill concrete cracks in a manner that doesn’t adhere to industry standards. Restruction also said some cracks were covered by Hydro Construction with a cosmetic coat, and that some “obvious cracks” were simply left unrepaired.
“Many of the non-cracking related issues identified by the city have not been resolved” either, according to the lawsuit, and Greeley is therefore refusing to issue Hydro Construction a certificate of completion.
The city claims Hydro Construction has breached the renovation contract by “inefficient” and “inadequate” performance, and that Greeley has therefore had to pay expenses and experienced damages as a result.
Hydro Construction issued Greeley a warranty and guarantee that its renovation would adhere to the contract’s terms, according to the lawsuit, as well as a promise that its finished result “will not be defective.” The city alleges that clause of the contract has been breached by Hydro Construction.
Greeley is seeking a jury’s judgment against Hydro Construction, to include:
An award of damages, “including allowable liquidated damages;”
“Pre- and post-judgment interest.”
Costs and attorney’s fees.
And any other relief a jury might want to award the city.
The lawsuit was filed by Michael Axelrad of Greeley’s City Attorney’s Office. The city has also retained counsel from Kutak Rock LLP of Denver.
A status conference in the lawsuit is set for 6 p.m. Aug. 18, according to a NoCo Optimist review of court records.