BELLOWS FALLS — In spite of an ultimatum to contractor Baybutt Construction, the town is poised to move ahead with the Rockingham Free Public Library renovation project and - with luck - not suffer any financial losses.
Town Counsel Stephen Ankuda said that it is too early to tell if Baybutt, based in Keene, N.H., will “get their ducks in a row and get back in the good graces of their subcontractors” by the deadline this Thursday.
But that would be “the best possible outcome and we hope they do,” he said. “There have been no objections to the quality of their work.”
Subcontractors stopped work over lack of pay, prompting an emergency Selectboard meeting on Jan. 10.
The board voted to exercise the town's option to terminate Baybutt's contract, putting the project among a number of others in the region that have been stalled or complicated by the firm's financial woes.
“They have seven days (from last Thursday) to make good on the contract or the contract is terminated,” explained Municipal Manager Tim Cullenen.
Further complicating the situation is the fact that Baybutt failed to secure a performance bond for the project.
The $21,000 the town paid to Baybutt for the bond will be applied toward the ultimate calculation of their bill to the town.
According to Selectboard Chair Thom MacPhee, the contracting associated with the RFPL renovation project has been overseen by the library trustees while the town handled the financing.
“It was all dealt with by the library board,” MacPhee said.
“There's been a lot of dialogue with the library staff with our counsel, and we've talked with [Baybutt's] lawyer,” MacPhee said. “But we're taking it one step at a time.”
Opinions differ on the extent to which the project has progressed.
MacPhee noted the project is at least 57 percent completed, and Ankuda said that percentage could be higher. Approximately 40 percent of the project has been paid, MacPhee estimated, but said that figure might not be exact.
Ankuda said Baybutt Construction has been paid for all the work that has been completed up to this point, and the Town has not lost any money for the project.
Ankuda said Plan B, C, and D are in place, depending on the outcome with Baybutt on Thursday.
“Plan A is that Baybutt completes the project. If not, we have choices and combinations of choices to complete the project in house, contract out to a new independent contractor to complete the project, or a combination of the above,” Ankuda said.
“In reality, the top priority is to protect the property, protect the project, and do the best we can to keep the project going as approved by the citizens, and consider any litigation down the road,” he said.
“If we can complete the project within the amount of money we have, then the town of Rockingham has not been damaged,” Ankuda concluded.
However, he cautioned, it is really “too early to tell” whether the town will suffer any losses.
If the town is forced to litigate, or if costs of hiring a new independent contractor exceed the balance of funds remaining for the project, the town might bear a financial burden.
Rockingham has paid Baybutt around $900,000 so far, of the estimated total building and site rehabilitation bond vote costs of $2.95 million.
RFPL Director Celina Houlne said the library is open its regular hours, and MacPhee said there were no construction or safety issues hanging out there to be handled.
“They buttoned it up pretty good,” he said.