Friday, February 22, 2008 - Page updated at 12:12 AM
E-mail article
Print view Share:
Digg
Newsvine
Add $20M to Sea-Tac light-rail station
Seattle Times transportation reporter
After a year of negotiations, Sound Transit has decided to accept a $20 million cost increase on its light-rail station at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
The total station cost is now $72 million, plus a $2 million contingency, compared with the original estimate of $52 million. The cost increase was endorsed by Sound Transit's Finance Committee on Thursday and is expected to be approved by the transit board next week.
Last March, Mowat Construction offered the sole bid — at $95 million. Sound Transit rejected the bid, and light-rail director Ahmad Fazel and Mowat moved to cut costs by simplifying the design while Mowat started work on the tracks and the main station shell.
In the redesign, several windows and steel beams have been removed from the roof.
"We had tough issues to work through, the redesign of the truss system, a redesign of glasswork," said Mowat President John Sandstrom. Also, a pedestrian bridge was moved into a different contract, under the Port of Seattle.
Sound Transit chose not to call for new bids because that could take six months, delaying the December 2009 scheduled opening.
Also, in Mowat "we have a known quantity, and a contractor on site who is doing quality work," said transit-board member Fred Butler, of Issaquah.
The station is part of a $2.7 billion, 16-mile corridor that starts in downtown Seattle.
Mike Lindblom: 206-515-5631 or mlindblom@seattletimes.com
Copyright © 2008 The Seattle Times Company
UPDATE - 01:44 PM
List grows; 9 Seattle schools could be cut
Starbucks CFO: Company may miss 1Q profit estimate
Jerry Large: Correction? Try a connection
NEW - 02:49 PM
Abuse charges filed in assault of 2-year-old now in a coma
All viaduct options are unfriendly to pedestrians, study finds

entertainment

events for Thursday, Dec. 4th
- Adaptation (Visual arts)
- UW Music: Wind Ensemble, Symphonic,... (Classical music)
- New Shift (Visual arts)
editors' picks
More shopping guides- Baby dies sleeping in car with parents in Lakewood
- Huskies Coaching Search | Texas Tech coach Mike Leach meets with UW
- Relative of slain Carnation family talks about the aftermath
- Mariners sign free agent Russell Branyan, hire Rick Adair, John Wetteland as coaches
- USC's Steve Sarkisian is added to Washington's coach list
- Atheists want God out of Ky. homeland security
- "Impeach Bush" ornament nixed
- State suspends Seattle doctor's license in sex case
- Fox shows Olympia sign; calls come pouring in
- List grows; 9 Seattle schools could be cut
- Danny Westneat | Real-estate bargains in the mist
- Michelle Obama's family: From slavery to White House
- Ancient pot stash found in China
- Washington banks trail industry in key indicators
- No woman is an island — unless she's on San Juan, offseason
- Ex-prosecutor's review finds fraud at Port of Seattle
- Nancy Leson | Good old Abruzzi's is back
- List grows; 9 Seattle schools could be cut
- Huskies Coaching Search | Texas Tech coach Mike Leach meets with UW
- "Impeach Bush" ornament nixed

