Stalled beltway construction OK’d

Malia Spencer

Wednesday, July 30, 2003 | 11:20 a.m.

Construction of Interstate 215 between Decatur Boulevard and Buffalo Drive finally has a start date now that a legal challenge to the project has been rejected, officials said Tuesday.

Construction on that portion of the Las Vegas Beltway was stalled when MMC Construction, a losing bidder on the project, alleged there were errors in Clark County's bidding process. MMC filed suit and obtained a temporary restraining order in March barring the county from accepting the bid of Diamond Construction Co.

The court has upheld the county's decision to award the work to Diamond Construction, so the county and the contractor can conduct the preconstruction conference, said Les Henly, the county's construction division manger of public works.

"With the legal problems the whole process was put on hold," he said.

Henly said he will go to the County Commission on Aug. 5 to ask the commissioners can re-affirm the winning bid to Diamond Construction.

"We want to get everything in order, dot all our i's and cross all our t's," he said.

Diamond has told the county it will stand by the original bid of $24.7 million given six months ago, even though it may cost the company, Henly said.

Marti Ashcraft, the attorney for MMC Construction, could not be reached early this morning to say whether the company intends to appeal.

Once everything is in order, Henly said, work can begin around Sept. 1. The entire project is scheduled to take 11 months, he said, with as many as 200 people working from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Henly said roughly 50 percent of the $24.7 million price tag will be for labor.

Workers will build new lanes, two in each direction, in between the existing frontage roads. Traffic disruption during construction should be minimal, he said

"It was designed that way," Henly said.

However, at some points construction traffic will cross with regular traffic, so drivers need to be aware of detours, stopped or slowed traffic, Henly said.

The overall safety of the beltway will be enhanced once the construction is over, a traffic safety expert said.

"It's been a terrible stretch of road," said Erin Breen, director of Safe Community Partnership.

Upgrading that section of the beltway will be "a boost to the new southwest part of town," Breen said.

Without the cross traffic and stoplights drivers will have a safer drive, she said, citing those conditions for the number of injury accidents that have occurred there.

"It will be great when it's finished," Breen said.

She also said that while construction is under way drivers must be aware and drive slower for the conditions.

"People need to pay attention to the fact that you could be starting and stopping quickly," she said.

Drivers should also keep in mind that traffic fines double in construction zones, she said.