Moses Lake Civic Center is on schedule
Construction workers installing tubes for a new heating system in the Civic Center project.
MOSES LAKE — The new Moses Lake Civic Center is on track to be completed by July 2011.
Project contractor Team Construction is currently setting foundational walls and laying underground utilities, said project superintendent Rod Lee.
Construction workers have been working on the project for the past five months.
He said the project ran a bit behind schedule during the early phases when they discovered water at the base of the elevator, which is located in the basement of the building.
“We had to use three pumps for 16 hours pumping 1,600 gallons of water out of the bottom of the elevator,” said Lee. “We didn’t anticipate so much water.”
The slight delay has not incurred additional costs to the project’s original $7.63 million price tag, he said.
Lee said they will go over the budget only when they cannot meet the city’s set completion date.
The base of the Civic Center is deeper than previous buildings, said Lee, because they wanted to make the 41,300-square-foot community center compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Moses Lake City Manager Joseph Gavinski said with each construction project, slight delays are expected.
“With every project, there are some challenges. We’d rather have it done right than done quickly,” he said.
Once completed, the Civic Center will be located between the city hall and police department buildings.
Lee said the building is environmentally sustainable.
“We are using energy efficient renewable resources. We are using a lot of recycled material in our construction like the panels and flooring, which is made out of cork and bamboo,” he said.
The Civic Center will upgrade the existing fire alarm and heating system to its neighboring buildings.
Some amenities of the three-story Civic Center include a cafe, council chambers, administrative offices, a 250-seat auditorium, a public lobby and an exercise room.
A separate building, which will be connected to the Civic Center, will house a new city museum.
“We hope that once the project is finished, it will become an identifier of Moses Lake, much like the library had been when it was built in the 1960s,” said Gavinski. “We hope the community will use the building to have events or meetings.”
As temperatures drop in the upcoming months, Lee said construction workers are prepared to do what is necessary to continue with the project.
“We will build tents or a temporary construction structure to allow us to continue,” he said.