There were weather delays and mechanical delays during the big renourishment project on Fort Myers Beach. Because Ahtna Marine & Construction did not finish the project on time the Town Council is withholding the final payment to Ahtna which is over $800,000.
Representatives from Ahtna did not even show up to the Town Council meeting Monday to state their case and fight for their money. In a letter to the Town Council Ahtna also claims they lost over $4 million on the project.
Ahtna was the lower of three bids for the project which had a budget of $22 million. Ahtna came in at $21.7 million while Callen Marine came in at $37.2 million and Weeks Marine submitted a bid of $38.8 million. Callen actually considered filing a protest over Ahtna being awarded the bid, because they claimed “Ahtna Marine does not possess the available dredge(s) or other equipment to safely perform the project.” Nobody got hurt during the project but machinery malfunctions certainly added to delaying its completion. There was also Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton to contend with…