Blick’s Construction continues to wait for trial against Adams County over demolition work

QUINCY — A Quincy construction firm is waiting for its day in court to collect more than $110,000 from Adams County in a dispute about additional work completed during the demolition process before the construction of the Adams County Jail.

The suit, filed in April 2018, was scheduled to go to trial on Monday. However, the case has been continued. A status appearance and scheduling conference has been scheduled for 9:15 a.m. Thursday.

The county accepted in January 2017 a bid by Blick’s Construction, 112 W. Lock And Dam Road, to complete demolition tasks for $677,112. Blick’s made its bid based upon details listed in a “project manual” created by the architectural firm of Poepping Stone Bach & Associates of Quincy.

County officials say the figure in the original bid has been paid.

Blick’s lists five instances in the complaint where changes had to be made because of incorrect or incomplete information in the project manual, resulting in additional costs. Those costs have not yet been paid.

The complaint alleges that Blick’s charged the county:

• An extra $5,600 for removal of a retaining wall at the former Adams County Health Department building, 330 N. Sixth, that was more than twice as thick than what was listed in the project manual.

• An extra $16,150 for the removal of 1,700 cubic yards of debris and an extra $55,896 for the removal of 2,550 tons of rock from a parking lot between 304 and 314 N. Sixth. Blick’s learned the parking lot was built over a previously demolished building. It claims that building was not referenced in the project manual. Blick’s claims the debris from the former building was placed into the basement area of that building and covered up. That made it necessary to remove the debris and for the area to be properly filled.

• An extra $7,496 for removing 342 tons of rock and $1,045 for removing a basement structure from a building at 607 Vermont, previously owned by Dale and Marty Venvertloh. After demolition began, Blick’s claims it discovered a basement rather than a crawl space as described in the project manual. That led to the additional cost.

• An extra $6,720 for the removal of a concrete foundation and $13,152 for bringing in 600 tons of extra rock during the demolition of a building at 609 Vermont, previously owned by Jeffrey Stupavsky. The project manual noted the foundation walls were made of limestone. Blick’s claims the foundation was limestone on top of a concrete foundation, which was more costly to remove. Also, the concrete portions of the foundation ran deeper than it was described in the project manual. The rock was used to fill the void.

• An extra $10,960 for 500 tons of rock used at the site of the former Hopewell Clinic, 314 and 316 N. Sixth. Following the demolition of the building, Blick’s claims a void approximately two feet deep existed where the slab foundation had been. The rock was used to fill the void and avoid the formation of a mud pit. 

Blick’s presented an invoice to the county on April 17, 2017, for all of the extra charges. The county to date has not paid those invoices that total $111,419.

Blick’s claims in each instance that it contacted representatives of Poepping Stone Bach & Associates as well as Terry Bower, supervisor of maintenance for Adams County, before additional work was done. Bower was listed as the county’s “on-site agent” in the complaint.

Quincy attorney Tad Brenner was listed as the attorney for Blick’s when the complaint was filed. However, he now serves as a judge for the Eighth Judicial Circuit. He was replaced by Jason Schutte, a former Quincy attorney now practicing in Springfield.

C.J. Blickhan is the president of Blick’s Construction.