Alna selectmen said at their Jan. 18 meeting they want R. Hopkins Concrete to return $10,000 paid in Aug. 2009 for work on the town’s sand and salt shed. In other business, the board also discussed the RSU 12 budget meeting on Saturday, where several people from town voted down budget articles.
Board members discussed the letter sent by selectmen chair Billie Willard to Damariscotta contractor Ron Hopkins requesting he return the money the town gave him for what they called, “poor workmanship”.
Selectmen accepted the bid Hopkins submitted in 2009 for work on the town’s sand and salt shed, a Quonset hut structure needing cement work. The job was supposed to have cost the town $20,087. Selectmen paid Hopkins $10,000 in advance of completion. He completed just the west wall foundation before residents and other local contractors aired complaints to the town and selectmen issued a stop work order.
Three out of five concrete core samples taken from the project failed strength standard testing conducted in September by Terracon Consultants of Scarborough. Willard said the company did not charge the town for the initial visit, but the testing cost $1500.
Hopkins has stood by his work. He has said he did not mix the cement, but did not believe there was anything wrong with it at the time. He also had said the heat had slowed the project’s progress.
The letter to Hopkins, sent Friday, suggested he either refer to his insurance company for repayment or make arrangements to meet with selectmen. The town officials said they would wait for a response from Hopkins. Willard said she has another letter drafted with stronger language in case selectmen do not hear from him.
“My main interest is to at least get something back,” Willard said, adding that Friday’s letter to Hopkins was a “soft touch” and asked Selectman David Seigars if he agreed.
“We want to get some money back after he didn’t do the job right,” Seigars said.
According to Seigars, contractor Barry Miete reinforced the cement wall Hopkins had worked on and finished the job in December.
“He does a good job,” Seigars said of Miete, adding the contractor used one inch rebar to hold the cement in place.
Seigars said there are still some maintenance issues with the sand and salt shed remaining. The shed needs a fan in the rear of the building to help cut down on moisture and there are a few holes in the roof that need to be repaired.
According to Alna selectmen, the RSU gave a previous estimated carry forward amount of $50,000. The town considered the funds in constructing the 2009 budget. Recently, the school unit revised the carry forward amount to $197,416. As it is so late in the season, selectmen said they would roll the funds into next fiscal year’s (2010) budget, which starts Feb. 1.
Willard also said she has asked non-profit groups that seek funds from the town each year to drop their requests by 10 percent. She said town officials are doing their best to reduce the tax burden for residents, keeping in mind the costs of running the town have not declined.
