Rutgers Defends Stadium Contractor Despite Poor Track Record
Rutgers Univ. (RU) officials yesterday said that they are "confident that the contractor in charge of the school's football stadium expansion project is well qualified despite the fact it was fired from its role overseeing 23 school construction projects" for the state of New Jersey, according to Ana Alaya of the Newark STAR-LEDGER. RU awarded Gilbane Building Co. a $4.6M contract in January to oversee the stadium expansion, but the company was dismissed in February from a project by the New Jersey Schools Development Authority (NJSDA) after a school it built "had to be partly torn down and rebuilt to remove mold." RU VP/Facilities & Capital Planning Antonio Calcado said that school officials "were aware that Gilbane was in a dispute with the NJSDA, but are confident that the company is qualified to oversee the construction work over the next two years." Calcado: "Projects always run into issues, but we found nothing on them that would preclude them from taking on this project." Gilbane recently "oversaw construction" of the new Prudential Center (Newark STAR-LEDGER, 4/29). Calcado said that Gilbane has "successfully managed several projects on the university's New Brunswick campus in the last decade," including a $160M capital improvement program. He added the mold issue was an "isolated incident" (Bergen RECORD, 4/29).
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| Rutgers Defend Contractor In Charge Of Football Stadium Expansion |
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