The Town Council has approved a $612,000 contract with Visus Engineering and Construction to complete the shoulder paving project on Fountain Hills Blvd.

This has been a priority project for the town for a number of years, but has been beset by difficulties, the most recent being design changes that escalated the cost for the southbound side and halted work before construction began on the northbound side.

Initially the project had included grant funding and was being managed by the Arizona Department of Transportation. ADOT made the decision to stop work after the possibility of having an excessive budget overrun that would be restricted by law. Town officials believe when the accounting for the project is completed there will be $350,000 coming back to the town, which can be used to help cover the new contract.

In May the council directed staff to move forward to complete the improvements using a direct bid process.

Visus is the contractor who did the work on the southbound side under the ADOT management. It is also the company working on the roundabout at Avenue of the Fountains and La Montana Drive.

The design issue that resulted in the overrun on the west side involved the discovery that utilities were not as deep as original plans showed. The issue was corrected using curb and gutter to manage runoff rather than deeper drainage ditches. The curb and gutter will also be used to complete the work on the east side of Fountain Hills Boulevard.

The town received five bids for the project. Visus was low bid and met the qualifying criteria.

The $612,000 total approved by the council Aug. 24 includes a $50,000 owner’s allowance above the contractor’s base bid. An owner’s allowance is used as a contingency to cover any potential unforeseen costs once work begins.