More delays for Modesto’s Virginia Corridor

Those eager to use the long-delayed extension of the Virginia Corridor – the paved trail popular with walkers, bicyclists and joggers – are going to have to keep waiting and waiting.

Modesto and its general contractor – Fresno-based Cal Valley Construction – are in a dispute over how to finish the approximately three-quarter-mile addition, from Bowen to Woodrow avenues.

The city claims Cal Valley paved the asphalt trail over the summer with too much of a slope. The north-south trail slopes slightly from east to west so rain does not form puddles on it. The Americans With Disabilities Act requires that the slope cannot exceed 2 percent, but parts of the trail had slopes of twice that, the city says.

The city also claims Cal Valley’s solution – to grind sections of the trail to reduce the slope and then seal the trail – did not work.

The surface of the asphalt now is too rough and cannot accommodate skateboarders, people in wheelchairs and those on bicycles with narrow tires, said Loren Holt, Modesto’s parks planning and development manager. He said there are concerns the asphalt will be vulnerable to cold weather and rain and not last as long as other sections of the corridor.

He said the city wants Cal Valley to tear up the asphalt and repave the extension.

That would add a few months to the project’s time for completion. Holt said the weather won’t be warm enough until about April for paving work. Work on the roughly $3 million project started in late May and was expected to be completed in early October, according to Holt. “In a nutshell, the asphalt does not meet the city’s specifications,” he said. “We are working with the contractor to remedy the problem.”

Cal Valley General Manager Clay Harmon disagrees with Modesto’s assessment. He said Modesto, like many cities, uses California Department of Transportation specifications for construction projects. Harmon said Cal Valley met those requirements, including its work to reduce the slope. “We dispute the city’s contentions,” he said. “We have constructed everything within Caltrans’ specifications as required by the city of Modesto.”

Harmon said Cal Valley met the project’s ADA requirements, which do not include one for the trail’s slope. He said there is a 300-foot section of the trail, as well as several small areas, that need more work after being ground by workers. But he said other than that, the trail is ready for use.

Holt and Harmon said Cal Valley is putting together a proposal to address the city’s concerns. “I’m hoping we can negotiate the issues out,” Harmon said.

He said Cal Valley finished work on the trail’s slope Nov. 18 and did not know there was a problem until receiving a Dec. 19 letter from the city. He said until then, the major holdup in completing the project was in getting the city to approve a solution to reduce the level of salt in the soil before putting in the landscaping.

These have not been the only problems that have delayed the project, which is being paid for by state and federal money and includes landscaping, benches and lights.

The first came when workers dug up Bowen Avenue near the corridor to remove a hump from the street. The hump was left after railroad tracks were removed years ago. The city wanted a level street so drivers can see people in the corridor as it crosses Bowen.

Bowen was supposed to be closed for three or four weeks. It ended up being closed for 11 weeks, in part because the city had to figure out how to protect an underground Modesto Irrigation District pipeline that was closer to the road than expected. The delay inconvenienced motorists, homeowners, and some of the businesses and customers at the nearby College Center shopping center.

The extension will bring the total length of the corridor to about 31/2 miles. The corridor starts at Needham Street and runs north along a former railway line.

This story was originally published January 7, 2015 at 7:43 PM with the headline "More delays for Modesto’s Virginia Corridor."