Creve Coeur Project Almost Done, But Is Lawsuit Next?

The board of directors for the Olive/Graeser Transportation Development District met in open session long enough to move to a closed session at the Government Center, Thursday, to discuss ongoing issues with project contractors on which could be headed to court for resolution.

The roughly 50 minute session was used to discuss what the agenda and board members described as "threatened legal action."

Creve Coeur Patch has previously reported that , Pace Properties, to take over payment to certain subcontractors when it learned earlier this year that Aura Contracting, LLC., was not doing so.

Thursday, Creve Coeur City Administrator Manager Mark Perkins told Patch that the city has received correspondence from a subcontractor regarding requests for payments," and that there may be others. He said that information was being forwarded to the TDD board and the board's legal counsel.

Board Executive Director Steve Heitz, a Pace Vice-President, had no comment, citing confidentiality.    

Perkins had told City Council members last week that the project could be completed by the end of this week, but the much of the same work left to be completed described then--an Olive Boulevard median and an overlay from Graeser to Schulte, is unfinished. Heitz told the board Thursday the goal was to have the project finished by the end of next week.

When asked if there was a single factor getting in the way of completing the items, Heitz answered, "Not really." When pressed as to why he couldn't describe the factors behind the delay, Heitz replied "I don't care to at this time. We've been working on this for a long time," he said. "We're trying to finish by the end of next week, and that's all I'm going to say at this point."

The TDD board is scheduled to meet July 15, both in open and closed session.