Editorial: Big jobs create big headaches

Tuesday, March 27, 2001 | 9:59 a.m.

In the past few years Nevada state government has had its share of public-works blunders. There are two projects in particular that have received well-deserved notoriety for not being finished on time and not coming in under budget. First, there is the Lied Library at UNLV, which was finished more than six months late and cost over $20 million more than its initial price tag of $40.4 million. Second, there is the $21 million veterans home in Boulder City, which is expected to be finished this April -- about one year late -- and will have cost overruns of about $1 million.

In the case of the Lied Library, the blame game has broken out as to who was responsible for the delays and cost overruns, with the university, architect, contractor and Public Works Board all pointing elsewhere when the question of fault arises. Last month Sun reporter Jennifer Knight, in a detailed story about the morass, noted that there were 30 change orders before the project was completed, which totaled 400 items and cost $3.58 million. Some of the change orders were real head-shakers: an extra $27,000 for a loading dock for the library's books; $427,000 for fireproofing; and $776,000 for elevators and escalators. Not only is it terrible that taxpayer dollars were wasted by the lack of foresight, but the students lose out, too, since that wasted money could have been better spent on the library or on other education priorities.

Then there is the veterans home in Boulder City, which has been beset by problem after problem during its construction. For instance, the 180-bed home was supposed to be 115,000 square feet, but it now is set to be just 82,000 square feet. The reduction in the overall size for the 180-bed home also means that there will just be one bathroom for every four residents (initially there was going to be a bathroom for every two residents). Sen. Bill O'Donnell, R-Las Vegas, brought home the impact of this in a recent legislative hearing, noting that this meant four residents will all have to share one sink, one shower, one medicine cabinet and one toilet. It is awful that veterans, who served their country so admirably, would be shortchanged in this way.

The delays and cost overruns at UNLV's Lied Library and at the veterans home have been inexcusable. State government needs to get this mess straightened out so that it doesn't happen again with other projects. Gov. Kenny Guinn has taken the right step in suggesting restructuring changes to the Public Works Board so he has more control. The Legislature, too, should take a more aggressive role in following up on these projects. Assembly Ways and Means Committee Chairman Morse Arberry, D-Las Vegas, said during a recent legislative hearing that ultimately the Legislature will get blamed. Arberry even acknowledged to Public Works Board manager Dan O'Brien that because of the high profile these cases have received, lawmakers would feel compelled to publicly beat up on O'Brien. "I don't want to fry with you," Arberry said.

Along with keeping a closer watch once a project gets under way, legislators should start asking themselves whether, in their desire to keep a lid on the projects' costs, they are actually setting them up to fail because they are creating unrealistic expectations as to what can be accomplished. Ultimately, the day-to-day responsibility resides with the manager of the Public Works Board. O'Brien has been on the job just five months, so none of the current mess is of his making. But it is encouraging that O'Brien believes that the Public Works Board wasn't aggressive enough before and that his agency in the future will have to be tough with the architects, state agencies and contractors. It is essential for the taxpaying public that O'Brien's words translate into deeds.