Hooper council hears near-complete update on 55100 West project; city faces roughly $200,000 net shortfall

Hooper — Hooper City Council received an update Dec. 5 on the 55100 West roadway project and was told the work is essentially complete but the city may still owe for cost overruns.

Taylor Stocker, the city’s project engineer with JED, told the council “99% of the project is complete” and said the remaining items are largely landscaping and irrigation work contractors defer to spring.

The council heard a breakdown of project finances showing an original project budget of about $6.1 million, with $5.4 million awarded for construction and engineering. Stocker said change orders, extended construction seasons and additional inspection costs produced roughly $387,000 in additional expense beyond the city’s previously committed local match of $326,000. Stocker said developers’ deferred improvement escrows and a potential Rocky Mountain Power claim together could return about $560,000 to the project, leaving “a little over $200,000” of net obligation on the city’s books.

Stocker and public works staff described the sources of the offsets. The council was shown about $413,000 expected from seven smaller homeowner escrows plus a large subdivision escrow, and Stocker said the team has documented delays it believes were caused by Rocky Mountain Power inaction and is “hoping to make a claim” for about $146,000 in liquidated damages tied to that delay.

Public works director Jared (last name not specified in the record) described the change-order and inspection process and said the change orders are documented and negotiated with the contractor. He told the council that when “issues arise during construction…there’s a proposal from the contractor” and that larger items receive formal change-order requests before approval.

Council members asked about the likelihood of recovering funds from Rocky Mountain Power. Stocker said the city has “plenty of documentation” and staff believe the updated franchise agreement and the project record provide support for a claim, though any recovery could be negotiated and the city might accept less than the full tracked amount.

The council also heard that the city continues to pursue additional grant funding for the south portion of 55100 West and other segments.

Why it matters: 55100 West is a major corridor for Hooper. Even with most costs covered by grant funding, the city will need to absorb or identify roughly $200,000 of additional expense unless developer escrows and the utility claim fully materialize.

What’s next: Staff will continue to collect escrows, pursue the claim against Rocky Mountain Power with legal counsel, and apply for additional grants to cover remaining segments of the corridor project.