Lawsuit won't halt bridge work

A civil racketeering lawsuit brought against the company constructing the troubled Shady Bridge south of Roseburg should not affect work on the bridge, state highway officials say.

Last week, Oregon Attorney General Hardy Myers accused Ross Bros. & Co. of trying to defraud the Oregon Department of Transportation of more than $1.1 million by allegedly submitting false claims on a project to construct a bridge over a railroad in Ontario.

Ross Bros., in a statement, called the lawsuit "meritless." The purported fraud came to light as the state was defending itself against a lawsuit filed by Ross Brothers. The company, based in Brooks, outside Salem, sued the state after the Oregon Department of Transportation rejected overrun claims on the Eastern Oregon project.

Construction on the 951-foot Shady Bridge on Interstate 5 has been idled since October 2006, ever since concrete grout was discovered leaking from the stem walls, which support the bridge deck. An X-ray examination of the structure revealed damage that could not be seen on the outside.

A second-company, Georgia-based Freyssinet, has been working since late September to repair the problems on the northbound structure. The $800,000 project is expected to be completed this spring.

At the same time, John Corven, a Florida bridge design and construction expert, has been examining thousands of pages of documents to determine who was at fault for the problems that cropped up with the bridge.

If Ross Brothers is at fault, the state could withhold a portion of its payments to the firm or order the company to pay the repair costs. ODOT is fronting the money for the repairs.

The bridge was 85 to 90 percent complete when the cracks were discovered.

Once the repairs are finished and side rails added to the deck, it will be ready for traffic and will meet the original design and load standards, officials said.

Both northbound and southbound traffic will be routed onto the new bridge while the existing northbound structure is demolished and a new southbound bridge is constructed. That structure is scheduled to be completed in late 2009.

Despite the lawsuit brought against Ross Bros. by the state, the company will be allowed to continue work on seven projects contracted with ODOT, agency spokesman Patrick Cooney said.

Last week, a court denied a motion from the state seeking a temporary restraining order preventing the company from working on other state contracts.

Besides the Shady Bridge project, Ross Bros. is working on the Pruner Bridge project on I-5. Three other construction projects are in Jackson County, where the company has also run into problems.

The Medford Mail Tribune reported that Ross Brothers has been fined $800,000 for construction delays associated with the Depot Street Bridge in Rogue River. The company has appealed and also filed a $3.9 million claim against Jackson County, the newspaper said.

The Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited the company for a serious violation after a temporary platform collapsed and a crane fell into Bear Creek.

The crane operator suffered a broken collarbone. Ross Bros. was issued a $2,500 fine, the Mail Tribune reported.

Stephanie Soden, a spokeswoman for the Oregon Department of Justice, would not say Monday whether Myers' office is also examining records from the Shady Bridge and other Ross Bros. projects. She would only say the state is aware of the other state contracts.


-- You can reach reporter John Sowell at 957-4209 or by e-mail at jsowell@newsreview.info.