Wheeling Tunnel: When will it ever close?

WHEELING - After more than a month of negotiations, West Virginia Department of Transportation officials still aren't sure when work to repair the Wheeling Tunnel will resume.

Wheeling Mayor Andy McKenzie got word Tuesday morning from WVDOT Secretary Paul Mattox that work on the Wheeling Tunnel would begin again next week, and that the eastbound tube would close Monday.

That fact was posted on one local newspaper's Web site, at 1:45 p.m. Tuesday.

But by 3:25 p.m., West Virginia Division of Highways spokesman Brent Walker said the WVDOH was having second thoughts about that plan. Phone calls to the WVDOH after the news was posted prompted someone at the agency to look at a calendar and realize that Jamboree In The Hills traffic would be leaving the area that day, and that vehicles would be entering Wheeling for the Upper Ohio Valley Italian Heritage Festival later in the week.

"We thought Monday was probably not the best time to close the tunnel," said Walker. "The closure may or may not happen Monday. I'm hesitant to confirm any information without a release date. We've done that before, and it's too important to the community."

At 4:45 p.m. Tuesday, the WVDOH released a statement confirming an agreement had been finalized between the WVDOH and Safeco Surety Co. - the bondholder for the tunnel project contractor, the Velotta Co. of Sharon Center, Ohio. The statement placed the tunnel closing decision on Velotta.

"We are pleased to have finalized the agreement that allows us to resume work on the eastbound tube," Mattox said in the statement. "While the specific start date is at the discretion of the contractor and the surety, it could be as soon as July 21, 2008."

"Everyone involved is now on the same page and committed to completing this important and long overdue project," he added. "We apologize for the delays."

The project still is expected to be completed by Nov. 1 - just in time for the start of the Winter Festival of Lights celebration at Oglebay Park - Mattox continued.

Robert Velotta, president of the Velotta Co., could not be reached for comment late Tuesday.

McKenzie, who also is a Republican state senator representing Ohio County, has received a copy of the agreement. He said it contains the following provisions:

Velotta, the original contractor for the Wheeling Tunnel restoration, will return to the project. Under the terms of the agreement announced Tuesday, the contractor will be under the supervision of the Safeco Surety Co. and construction managers from WVDOH for the first six weeks of construction.

Velotta will be permitted to bring back any contractors it wishes, with one exception - the Velotta-owned Concrete Restoration Specialists. It was the firm responsible for the initial shotcrete work in 2007.

Velotta is to be paid $1.045 million for work it already has completed in the tunnel. The fee pertains to both "disputed and undisputed" dollars outstanding to Velotta, as well as other issues.

Only the eastbound tube is to be closed, but motorists will find times during the coming months when the westbound tube also is closed to traffic. This will occur as electrical work is done in the tunnel, requiring both sides to be closed concurrently. The westbound closures will occur only in the evenings.

"We are now very concerned that the work is done efficiently and quickly, and with as little disruption as possible to motorists," McKenzie said. "It's an unfortunate situation."

The Velotta Co. won the contract in 2006 to renovate both tubes of the Wheeling Tunnel with a bid of $5,776,989. Problems removing old tiles threw the project over schedule as the work was being completed by Massaro Industries of Oakmont, Pa. The unfinished eastbound tube was reopened Nov. 15, and Velotta hadn't been paid for work since October.