CDOT sues construction firms over delays finishing C-470 toll lanes

CDOT sues firms over C-470 toll lane construction delays in Denver

Construction on the C-470 express lanes project in February 2020. (Andy Cross/The Denver Post)

The Colorado Department of Transportation has sued a local construction company over a $204 million widening of C-470 that was finished in 2020 but remains the subject of disputes.

Flatiron | AECOM, a partnership between Broomfield’s Flatiron Construction and Greenwood Village-based AECOM Construction, was sued Monday in Denver District Court. The company is accused of “mismanagement and bad-faith misrepresentations.”

Flatiron | AECOM was hired in June 2016 to add express toll lanes on the popular highway and planned to finish its work by October 2019, according to the lawsuit. Because the project hasn’t fully been approved, the construction company has breached its contract, CDOT alleges.

“CDOT agreed to extend the deadline for project completion on numerous occasions to accommodate F | A’s various cited reasons for being unable to complete the C-470 project, to no avail,” the lawsuit states, using an abbreviation for the partnership.

“CDOT relied to its detriment on the expectation that F | A would act in good faith and with fair dealing toward CDOT pursuant to the C-470 contract,” according to the lawsuit.

The express lanes opened in mid-2020 and construction on that stretch of C-470 is complete.

But Matt Inzeo, a spokesman for CDOT, said some boxes still need to be checked. Under CDOT’s contract with Flatiron | AECOM, “final acceptance of the project is contingent on confirmation that there are no outstanding claims or disputes,” according to Inzeo.

In 2019, AECOM Technical Services, a subcontractor, sued Flatiron | AECOM in federal court, accusing it of not paying AECOM Technical Services $5 million for the subcontractor’s design work. Flatiron | AECOM countersued and accused AECOM Technical Services of making many errors in its designs. That legal dispute is still outstanding.

Flatiron declined to comment Tuesday. A request for comment from AECOM was not answered.

In its lawsuit, CDOT is asking a Denver judge to award it an undetermined amount of money for lost toll revenue and years of extra administrative costs. The state agency is represented by Assistant Attorneys General Leanne Fobes and Joshua Kottke.

CDOT sues firms over C-470 toll lane construction delays in Denver

Construction on the C-470 express lanes project in February 2020. (Andy Cross/The Denver Post)

The Colorado Department of Transportation has sued a local construction company over a $204 million widening of C-470 that was finished in 2020 but remains the subject of disputes.

Flatiron | AECOM, a partnership between Broomfield’s Flatiron Construction and Greenwood Village-based AECOM Construction, was sued Monday in Denver District Court. The company is accused of “mismanagement and bad-faith misrepresentations.”

Flatiron | AECOM was hired in June 2016 to add express toll lanes on the popular highway and planned to finish its work by October 2019, according to the lawsuit. Because the project hasn’t fully been approved, the construction company has breached its contract, CDOT alleges.

“CDOT agreed to extend the deadline for project completion on numerous occasions to accommodate F | A’s various cited reasons for being unable to complete the C-470 project, to no avail,” the lawsuit states, using an abbreviation for the partnership.

“CDOT relied to its detriment on the expectation that F | A would act in good faith and with fair dealing toward CDOT pursuant to the C-470 contract,” according to the lawsuit.

The express lanes opened in mid-2020 and construction on that stretch of C-470 is complete.

But Matt Inzeo, a spokesman for CDOT, said some boxes still need to be checked. Under CDOT’s contract with Flatiron | AECOM, “final acceptance of the project is contingent on confirmation that there are no outstanding claims or disputes,” according to Inzeo.

In 2019, AECOM Technical Services, a subcontractor, sued Flatiron | AECOM in federal court, accusing it of not paying AECOM Technical Services $5 million for the subcontractor’s design work. Flatiron | AECOM countersued and accused AECOM Technical Services of making many errors in its designs. That legal dispute is still outstanding.

Flatiron declined to comment Tuesday. A request for comment from AECOM was not answered.

In its lawsuit, CDOT is asking a Denver judge to award it an undetermined amount of money for lost toll revenue and years of extra administrative costs. The state agency is represented by Assistant Attorneys General Leanne Fobes and Joshua Kottke.

This story is for our paid subscribers only. Please become one of the thousands of BusinessDen members today!

Your subscription has expired. Renew now by choosing a subscription below!

For more informaiton, head over to your profile.

Profile


SUBSCRIBE NOW

 — 

 — 

 — 

TERMS OF SERVICE:

ALL MEMBERSHIPS RENEW AUTOMATICALLY. YOU WILL BE CHARGED FOR A 1 YEAR MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL AT THE RATE IN EFFECT AT THAT TIME UNLESS YOU CANCEL YOUR MEMBERSHIP BY LOGGING IN OR BY CONTACTING [email protected].

ALL CHARGES FOR MONTHLY OR ANNUAL MEMBERSHIPS ARE NONREFUNDABLE.

EACH MEMBERSHIP WILL ONLY FUNCTION ON UP TO 3 MACHINES. ACCOUNTS ABUSING THAT LIMIT WILL BE DISCONTINUED.

FOR ASSISTANCE WITH YOUR MEMBERSHIP PLEASE EMAIL [email protected]




Return to Homepage

POSTED IN Government, Law, ,

Editor's Picks

Comments are closed.