ORANGE COUNTY PERSPECTIVE : A Need to Lean on Airport Contractor

Anyone who has ever remodeled a house is likely to know the apprehension of wondering whether the work will get completed on time. Orange County’s Airport Commission has a renovation project on a grand scale awaiting completion, the new $60- million terminal at John Wayne Airport. Its concern about completion on schedule has gone beyond mere apprehension to the point of alarm.

While the contractor, Taylor Woodrow Construction California Ltd., stands by previous commitments to complete the terminal by Sept. 15, some Orange County officials have been saying privately that they are increasingly concerned that the project cannot be completed on schedule. That could leave the county in the awkward position of having an opening ceremony already scheduled, for which there will be nothing to open but a partially completed new terminal.

One delay is understandable; several suggest a real problem.

The first scheduled opening date of April 1 already was pushed back to Sept. 15 when the construction company said it could not finish the project on time without a large commitment of resources. But like the homeowner who may grumble over one delay and be moved to action by a second, the county now has strong grounds to apply some pressure.

If the contractor can’t meet a second deadline nearly six months later, the old set of excuses won’t continue to wash.

The county has had too many problems with Taylor Woodrow as it is, trading insults since the start of the project in 1987. At one point, county officials nearly fired the firm because of construction delays, staffing problems and complaints from subcontractors.

Recently, county airport commissioners reported visiting the construction site and seeing that only a handful of people were even working.

Hindsight is easy. Sure, the county should have leaned harder on the contractor much earlier. Unfortunately, there’s less leverage for the county the closer it gets to the anticipated completion date.

If necessary, the county should help however it can to get the remaining work done at the terminal and bicker later over the contractor’s obligation to come in on time with the completed work.

The county already is looking for alternative airport sites, a signal of the overwhelming need for improved airport facilities in Orange County. All the more reason for speedy completion of the new terminal.