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$100,000 Is Tab To Finish New Hangars

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By LAURA KINSLER

lkinsler@tampatrib.com

Published: October 25, 2008

ZEPHYRHILLS - The city will have to spend nearly $100,000 on its new airport hangars to meet fire code.

City Manager Steve Spina had hoped to be able to keep the costs down for the project, but the additional sealant and fire-retardant flashing exceed the earlier estimates. The material is needed to prevent fuel spills inside the new T-hangars.

The Florida Department of Transportation is paying for most of the $2.7 million expansion project, which would accommodate 67 more planes at the municipal airport. Spina has asked the department to pick up 80 percent of the tab for the change order.

Problems with the hangar project arose after the city council had adopted the budget and construction had begun. Fire Marshal Kerry Barnett signed off on the original blueprints but later halted construction, saying the design was flawed.

The Airport Authority and manager Trina Sweet, along with the design engineer, said the marshal's demands were redundant and unnecessary. The two departments butted heads over who was responsible for the mix-up, forcing Spina to hire an independent engineer to evaluate the situation.

"It's kind of dragged on," said Ray Clark, FDOT aviation project manager. "We've gotten calls from people who are just itching to get their planes in there."

The hangars were supposed to open in July. The change order has delayed the opening indefinitely. "Everything's ready to go except for this," Spina said.

Spina will ask the council to pay for the changes with fire safety impact fees, rather than airport funds, while it waits to find out whether FDOT will reimburse the city for any of the additional costs. The city has $195,000 available from fire impact fees.

"I'm prepared to pay it either way," Spina said.

Clark said FDOT lived up to its end of the deal with Zephyrhills by agreeing to pay 80 percent of the original contract. The contract did not contain a large contingency for unexpected cost overruns. If another aviation project comes in under budget, there may be some available funds down the road.

"Our position is either it was designed improperly, or it was built improperly, or there was a misinterpretation of the code," Clark said. "Times are tough, and there's not a lot of extra money to pull from one project to add to another."

Reporter Laura Kinsler can be reached at (813) 865-4844.

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