It has been a long journey–much longer than expected–but Patriot Contracting, the takeover contractor for the surety after the first contractor defaulted, has done a great job.

Chris Reedy is site superintendent for Patriot, a company out of Houston.  Many people have probably met him around Ville Platte in the past few months.  He is working very hard to get this project done.

Last week was a good one, with the building’s interior passing many inspections.  In addition, the library has begun the work of getting shelving set up.  This will take at least two weeks.  There are also many other steps to complete.

The shelving work is not part of the building contract.

There are still items to be done, both by Patriot and by library staff and other vendors.  But we are getting closer.

Special thanks to Mr. Kenneth O’Connor and his crew for making the courtyard look beautiful!

The finishing work is now overdue.

In November and December the long-delayed suspended serpentine ceiling was installed.  The carpet work was also completed.

No further work has been done by the general contractor, and in late December the police jury terminated the general contractor and invoked the performance bond.

The attorney for the police jury and the attorney for the surety company have been involved in the paperwork claims process that will allow the surety company to come in and take over and complete the project.

In the meantime, several meetings have been held with representatives of the police jury and representatives of the surety.  The building has been inspected by representatives of the surety, and lists of the work remaining have been compiled and given to representatives of the surety.

We do not know when the work will start back up.  There is very little left to do, but the building is not at the substantial completion stage yet.

As soon as we know more, we will post it here.

The landscaping and courtyard for the new building are really taking shape.  Inside, cabinet work has been done, glass installed in most of the interior windows, and a large part of the flooring laid.  We are looking toward a December opening.

As July begins, the interior has been painted, and work will begin soon on the ceiling.  Meanwhile the exterior work is continuing.  The stone columns that you see on the exterior are also repeated in the interior.